2012 Super Bowl – Go, Big GREEN!!

One of the best kept secrets about the Super Bowl is that, for the past 18 years, the NFL Environmental Program has been working tirelessly to make a difference in sustainability and carbon offsetting. The good news? EVERYBODY wins! Each year the program gets stronger and more successful, so who knows the great things that can happen next year? The NFLEP works with the community to keep the offsets and benefits local. This year their efforts included:

1st & Green issued a challenge to track carbon offsetting. So far, the Super Bowl activities have offset 1,402,421 pounds of carbon! This includes everything for the month leading up to, during and after the event. Once the game is over, the real work begins with the clean-up efforts.
15,000 megawatt-hours of renewable energy certificates will be supplied by Green Mountain Energy Company to offset Super Bowl greenhouse gas emissions.
1st & Green is also tracking water usage, and over 2.5 millions gallons of water have been saved!
Donations will be made to the Urban Forestry Project and trees will be planted.
All the office supplies will be donated to local schools.
Pepsico donated and placed recycling bins through the venue on game day.
With the help of food recovery group Second Helpings, Tens of thousands of pounds of food will be collected and distributed to those in need.
Jackets, winter wear, shirts, etc. that weren’t used or were gently used will be donated to local Indianapolis charities.
Steel construction stuff, etc. will be saved to use in the future.
What about all those signs, shelters, etc made of mesh and fabric that were all around town? Estimates were that several MILES of fabrics were used. They are being collected and will be repurposed into bags, wallets, and other inventive creations.
And, much, much more…

Take a fun look at the Green Mountain infographic:

Aviation Fuel is Getting Greener

Exciting news on the quest to reduce our carbon footprints – last week Richard Branson, of Virgin Atlantic, made a bold environmental promise that, along with LanzaTech, they would be introducing a new low-carbon aviation fuel on Virgin Atlantic planes within two to three years. Even better, the team is developing a creative, sustainable and promising solution to our reliance on fossil fuels. Basically, their technology uses waste gases from industrial steel production which is captured, fermented and chemically converted using Swedish Biofuels technology for use as a jet fuel. This reduces carbon emissions in two ways; it recycles waste gases which would otherwise be released into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide, and the planes will not be using traditional aviation fuel.

As Sir Richard said in his press conference, “Today I am in London to announce one of the most exciting developments of our lifetime and a major breakthrough in the war on carbon. Virgin Atlantic, with our partners LanzaTech, is developing a world-first low-carbon aviation fuel that will halve its carbon footprint.

This could turn aviation from a dirty industry to one of the cleanest. Industrial processes produce vast amounts of waste energy – we are going to capture this and (he says modestly) very cleverly turn it into jet fuel. In a nutshell, we are entering the recycling business. We will be recycling waste products, taking much of the s**t from up the chimney stacks and turning it into aviation fuel.”

Exciting news indeed, even though this is not the first time anyone has used an alternative to fossil fuels. Of course, we all know about biodiesel fuel, which is a clean burning alternative fuel, produced from domestic, renewable resources, like fats and oils, found in soybeans, for example. Biodiesel contains no petroleum, but it can be blended at any level with petroleum diesel to create a biodiesel blend. It can be used in compression-ignition (diesel) engines with little or no modifications. Biodiesel is simple to use, biodegradable, nontoxic, and essentially free of sulfur and aromatics. The production of biodiesel fuel has more than tripled in the last 6 years, and the US Military is in the process of converting to its use.

Other “green” fuels are being developed, and some look very promising. Scotland is committed to using seaweed and algae as cleaner alternatives than fossil fuels.

In the meantime, Virgin Atlantic will be dazzling us with their first “demo” flight with the new fuel in a year or two. Looks like we are headed in a good, green direction!

Guilt-Free “Googling”

Google is my favorite go-to spot for information gathering of all kinds, and I bet I’m not alone. But, in my search for greening, I never gave a moment’s thought to how much energy Google actually uses. You know, it all just kind of happens magically, right? Not so, and in fact, a 2009 article in the British newspaper The Sunday Times even claimed Google searches generated large amounts of greenhouse gases. The article, which caused a stir in the environmental community, said a single Google search generates the same amount of carbon as boiling a kettle of water for tea. Now, think how many searches you have done in the last week? In the last day? That’s a LOT of tea!

So, what did Google do? They defended themselves vigorously, and the paper later accepted Google’s contention that most Google searches produce 35 times less carbon than the report suggested. What made this a particularly bitter pill to swallow for Google is that, according to the Huffington Post, “the environment has long been a major concern for co-founder and CEO Larry Page and, since 2007, the company has been paying for projects that remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere to completely offset its own emissions.

To reduce the impact of all its power use on the environment, Google is buying renewable power, investing in renewable energy projects to help make it more available, making its data centers more efficient and paying for projects that remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, known as carbon offsets.

Also, Google is trying to prove that its business model is far greener than the alternative. Even if data centers use lots of power, using them to run a search on, say, the legend of Atlantis, uses far less energy than driving to a library and looking through an encyclopedia for the information.”

On Monday, Google again made headlines regarding energy, and this time for the positive investment they are making in wind power. This from Reuters: “Google Inc. said on Monday it and two Japanese partners will pay General Electric Co about $500 million for a majority equity stake in the world’s largest wind farm, under construction in Oregon.

The $2 billion Shepherds Flat project, near Arlington, Oregon, is due to be completed next year. It will stretch over 30 square miles of north-central Oregon and generate enough energy for 235,000 U.S. homes. The site’s developer is Caithness Energy. Measured by its 845-megawatts of capacity, the site is the world’s largest wind farm, Google and GE said.

GE said the collaboration was part of its strategy of drawing private investment to the U.S. wind market. GE and Google are partnering with the U.S. unit of Japan’s Sumitomo Corp and a unit of Itochu Corp.”

So, looks like Google is more than a lot of hot air. Let’s hope other corporations follow suit. And, we can still indulge in “Googling” guilt-free!!

Lightning in a Bottle – the Greenest Festival in America!

When we think of Memorial Day weekend, we often think of backyard barbeques, and the unofficial start of summer. In Southern California, Silverado to be exact, a wonderful, and very unique 4-Day festival takes place. Lightning in a Bottle has it all, and for all ages, including many activities for kids. People bring their kids and their parents, too, so it it truly multi-generational. Music, camping, art, workshops, yoga, meditation and so much more.

Named the GREENEST FESTIVAL IN AMERICA for good reason, their tagline is “Leave it better, leave it beautiful.” LIB (as it is affectionately known) takes sustainability to a whole new level. NO plastic water bottles here, but there is all the free water you can drink and put into your own reusable bottle. All of the music stages are made of either recycled materials or bamboo, in the most incredibly creative and intriguing designs. In their own words, “Our energy initiatives this year include:

• Biodiesel generators providing power for the stages and vending areas

• A large solar array to help power the event and feed electricity back into the grid

• Energy efficient lighting

• Renewable energy art installations

Our Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reduction efforts in 2010 diverted 46 metric tons of GHGs from entering the atmosphere: the equivalent of over 5,000 gallons of gasoline or over 100 barrels of oil!”

There are workshops on everything from solar power, making your own kombucha, building an earthbag dome, permaculture, soil, and even one entitled “Build a Gasifier, run an Engine or a Car on Bullshit.” Speakers cover topics just as diverse. And, there is a big Eco-Art-Kids-Korner – EAKK! The festival artists are using recycled materials, including old, leftover paints. I am not doing it justice, please click on LIB and find out more – who knows, next year, you may find your way to the festival?

Why is this so noteworthy? Everybody is having a great time, and doing it in a way that leaves the environment better, the people more informed and the future generations more mindful about the importance of sustainability.

What if we all could come together to celebrate and learn in such an inspiring way? Just think: “Leave it better, Leave it beautiful!!”

Sweet As Sugar?

As I keep exploring the world of sustainability and how we make use of items that would normally be trash, it is rewarding to find something that has such a diverse life and , well, afterlife cycle.

What could be sweeter than sugar? How about all the eco-uses for the rest of the sugarcane plant, after the sweet sugarcane juice is extracted from the stalks. Now, we know about the common kinds of sugar such as raw sugar, refined white sugar, brown sugar, cane juice. We also may be familiar with the drinks that have ingredients made from sugar like rum, falernum, molasses, and cachaca (the national spirit of Brazil). And, Ethyl alcohol is used in such diverse places as thermometers, solvents and is what gives drinks their kick.

We may even be aware sugarcane can be used to make ethanol, which is basically fermented sugar that is gaining popularity as a fuel additive. In fact, the use of ethanol fuel alone or mixed with gasoline is increasing. The Indy Racing League has been using ethanol exclusively as its fuel since 2007.

But what you may not have heard about is Bagasse, which is what’s left of the stalk after all the sugarcane juice is removed. Bagasse has been used for cattle food, fuel, paper and paper products such as plates, and take home containers (replacing styrofoam.)

One of the best kept secrets is how sugarcane has been used in making fibers, fabrics and yarn. One company in Japan even used it to make a line of designer blue jeans, and other fashions for men. Sugar Cane Co. What I am personally excited about is the beautiful hand knitting yarn made from Sugar Cane…

Who knows what else can be made out of this diverse, and very green product? It’s true, ONE MAN’S TRASH really is another man’s treasure!

** The line ONE MAN’S TRASH is a writing prompt form Be Kind Rewrite

Do you Know your Carbon Footprint?

You may not be surprised that many of us don’t know what our carbon footprint number is, or even what a carbon footprint is. So, first let me explain just what a carbon footprint actually is (courtesy of Wikipedia):

Click here to Calculate your Carbon Footprint

“A carbon footprint is “the total set of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused by an organization, event, product or person.” Greenhouse gases can be emitted through transport, land clearance, and the production and consumption of food, fuels, manufactured goods, materials, wood, roads, buildings, and services. For simplicity of reporting, it is often expressed in terms of the amount of carbon dioxide, or its equivalent of other GHGs, emitted.

Once the size of a carbon footprint is known, a strategy can be devised to reduce it. Scholars suggest the most effective way to decrease a carbon footprint is to either decrease the amount of energy needed for production or to decrease the dependence on carbon emitting fuels. ”

To put it in practical terms, think of knowing your current carbon footprint number as similar to the first day of your diet when you step on the scale and see the amount you weigh. And, how you are motivated to reduce that number. It is the jumping off point – the place to measure how far you have come from.

There are many ways we can reduce our carbon footprints. Sometimes, we can rely on alternative projects, like solar or wind power, reforestation, etc. which is known as Carbon Offsetting. So, we compensate for an emission that is made somewhere else.

Here are a few examples from my prior posts:

Hairspray Heaven - Aveda offsets the use of their aerosol hairsprays

Let’s Put on a Greener Show - the trucks that take the sets, costumes, etc. for more and more National Tours are now Touring Green

Which Came First – The Book or the Tree? - Eco-libris will plant a tree for every book you read. (this one personally helps me feel less guilty about buying books)

So…what’s YOUR number? How can you reduce it?

Get Your GREEN On

Today is the day that the world goes green for a day – green as in Irish, not necessarily GREEN as in sustainable. Today, rivers, fountains and other waterways are dyed green, copious ammounts of green food coloring turns everything from beer to frosting to milk to poataoes to, well, just about anything edible green. People are wearing green on all the usual articles of clothing plus green hats, feather boas, shamrock pins, earrings, socks and probably some things we don’t want to think about. There are parades and parties galore.

What if we could celebrate the other GREEN – you know, the sustainable green with such joyful abandon? Not only one day a year, but everyday. And, yes, I know there is Earth Day in April, but what if everyday could be Earth Day?

And, right now, our earth is hurting. If nothing else, the events in Japan in the last week should have convinced us that there has to be a better way to get power than by using nuclear power plants. Among others, wind power is gaining in popularity, and who knows the new ways that are waiting to be invented? New, GREEN ways.

What if we could be the very model of sustainability – and inspire others to live more sustainable, greener, environmentally friendly lives? Everyday, starting right now. What if we could look at what is happening around us as a time to wake up? Being GREEN is more than a lame excuse to drink yourself silly with rivers of green beer. It is about creating a sustainable world. After all, there is green and there is GREEN. If you want to have that bottle of Guinness, please recycle it. If you want to wear green, why not put on something eco-chic and friendly to the planet?

Now, go get your GREEN on!

Greening the Super Bowl

Imagine my surprise and delight when I rad an article about the greening of the BIG game! In the latest post from Megan Dobransky of earth911.com I learned all about this surprising and much appreciated benefit from the NFL to the planet. Here is an abridged version of her post:

“The National Football League has been investing in environmental programs for 17 years, and there’s a reason for that, according to Jack Groh, director of the NFL Environmental Program.

“We’re just part of the operation, not public relations,” he says. “At the NFL, it’s always been more ‘walk the walk’ than ‘talk the talk.’ We want to maximize the environmental friendliness and not worry so much about having a ‘green image.’”

For the Super Bowl each year, the NFL works directly with the host city to prepare projects designed to address the immediate environmental impacts of the big game.

The footprint of an event that size can be devastating. “Any large event has a few measurable impacts,” Groh says. “Solid waste is obviously huge, so is transportation and emissions related to energy use. Water usage and a few other things are important, but those are the big three.”

That’s why many of the projects that the NFL undertakes during the Super Bowl relate to solid waste, transportation and greenhouse gas emissions. Here’s a rundown of what the NFL is doing this year in North Texas.

Solid Waste Management and Recycling

Groh doesn’t have quantitative figures on recycling, but he does say that between 20 percent and 30 percent of the waste stream from the 2007 Super Bowl in Miami was diverted from landfills.

This year will be no different with numerous recycling programs at the major event venues, including Cowboys Stadium and the Super Bowl stadium compound, media center and headquarters offices.

Groh remains seemingly downhearted that he didn’t have figures on the NFL recycling efforts. “Don’t ever let the perfect become an enemy of the good. If you push the envelope and do the maximum that’s possible, then you’re doing fine – even if you can’t quantify it,” he says.

Prepared Food Recovery

The NFL expects to recover thousands of pounds of prepared food from both sanctioned and non-sanctioned Super Bowl events. The food, along with any canned or packaged items, will then be donated to the North Texas Food Bank and the Tarrant Area Food Bank where it will be distributed to shelters, community kitchens and churches throughout the area.

William Daniels, food sourcing manager for the North Texas Food Bank, says the two food banks will split donations based on proximity. Prepared foods will go directly to agencies and packaged food will come back to the food bank for normal distribution.

Materials Donation

Groh says the NFL has been reusing and repurposing items from the Super Bowl for almost 14 years. Leftover materials like decorations, office supplies and equipment used during Super Bowl XLV will be collected by the Salvation Army and distributed to local nonprofits in the North Texas area.

“Last year we came up with the best solution we’ve ever had,” Groh says. “We had six miles of fabric used as fence covering that we sent to New Orleans where they repurposed it into shower curtains, messenger bags and other things, and a portion of the proceeds went to fund youth programs in the community.”

The NFL will be copying this program again this year for the North Texas community.

“It’s about trying to find the highest potential use, the most beneficial use for the material,” Groh says.

Sports Equipment and Book Donation Project

More than 100 schools in North Texas were able to donate books, sports equipment, board games and school supplies for children in need.

Items were collected by the Salvation Army in Arlington on Jan. 20; they will be inventoried, sorted and then distributed to schools and youth programs.

Climate Change Initiatives

Super Bowl XLV will play host to a variety of climate change initiatives, including renewable energy.

Groh says there are two main ways to “green” energy at big events. One is to directly source renewable energy from a facility, but this is less common. “It’s more common to go to the same facility and purchase credits, which means money is invested in creating new renewable energy,” Groh says.

He also stresses that whichever method is implemented, the net positive effect is the same. Virtually all major events and facilities during Super Bowl XLV will be part of this renewable energy credit system.

Another thrust of the climate change initiative involves planting trees, which offset carbon pollution. Just 30 trees can absorb the CO2 generated by the average person. In partnership with the U.S. Forest Services and the Texas Forest Service, the NFL will help plant thousands of trees throughout North Texas.

Although statistics won’t be available until next year, Groh says the NFL and the U.S. Forest Service will begin tracking the environmental benefits of all the planted trees.

“Local cities will report to the Forest Service the growth rate and how many trees still survive. They will then take those numbers and make calculations about the benefits like pollution absorption, how much carbon is locked up and the heat island effects,” he explains.

Brand new this year, biofuels will also be used as part of the climate change initiatives. These clean-burning biodegradable, and nontoxic fuels will be used for transportation, including several hundred buses and field generators wherever possible.

Each year the NFL plants thousands of trees as part of its Super Bowl environmental projects.”

Thank you to Megan and earth 911.com for sharing this story. And a big GO TEAM NFL!!! KEPP UP YOUR GREEN-NESS – WHOO HOO!!!

Vampires Among Us…

Halloween has come and gone, but the evidence remains that Vampires are still among us!! Vampire power, that is. Just what is it? Basically it is standby power, also known as vampire power, vampire draw, phantom load or leaking electricity, which refers to the electric power consumed by electronic appliances while they are either switched off or in a standby mode. This problem is so huge, vampire power is costing American homes about $3 BILLION a year!

The biggest power-suckers are:

Power supplies, transformers and inefficient electronic devices.
VCRs, DVD players and most audio systems.
TVs, home cinema suites and set-top boxes
Microwave ovens
Computers, digital monitors and printers
Air conditioning systems with remote control.
Devices with “Instant on” functions, with remote control receivers, or waiting for the user to interact.
Devices with a stand-by light or clock.
Power Adapters (sometimes referred to as wall warts), whether they are powering a device or not.
Most home video game consoles

I stumbled upon a great site that tells us how to figure out how much energy we are wasting, and lots of other amazing facts: Vampire Power Sucks

The short, easy answer for all of us is to turn off, unplug, buy power strips that are green (ones that stop power from being sucked out when devices are off) and basically be aware. You CAN make a difference, and so can I. The goal – stop the Vampires from sucking any more power from us!

Dirty, Rotten Scoundrels – also known as BIG OIL

It seems like just yesterday when Californians went to the polls in Nov 2008 to cast our votes - yes or no – on the highly publicized and hotly debated Proposition 8, funded partly (to be charitable) by organized religion (hello Mormon Church, we’re looking at you.) We all know how that went. Since this is a blog about being greener, not about human rights…..focus, Fredi, focus!! Fast forward, here we are again, and on November 2, 2010, we will be voting on a proposition funded largely by out -of-state special interests (hello big-oil, we’re looking at YOU.)

Poposition 23. If it passes, would suspend AB 32, the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (California’s landmark clean air legislation) until the state unemployment rate drops to 5.5% or below for four consecutive quarters. California’s unemployment rate, which currently hovers around 12%, has been at 5.5% or below for four consecutive quarters just three times since 1980., so it is highly unlikely it will happen anytime soon. In fact, supporters of Proposition 23 say it would simply suspend California’s global warming plan until the economy stabilizes, people get back to work and can afford these investments. What?? Feels like the old Prop 8 double speak. So, we should wait to be greener and more conscious and responsible until it is CONVENIENT?? Huh???

Stay with me here – AB 32 requires that greenhouse gas emission levels in the state be cut to 1990 levels by 2020. The process of cutting greenhouse gas emissions in the state is slated under AB 32 to begin in 2012.

People opposed to Prop 23 are calling it the DIRTY ENERGY PROPOSITION. It’s not about just the jobs, and in fact, in the last fifteen years or so, businesses and jobs in the clean energy industries have grown at a rate of approximately 10 times the state average. This has all kinds of support from many in-state folks, including both candidates in the gubernatorial race, and has even received a contribution of $1,500,000 from the Natural Resources Defense Council and many medical and human rights organizations.

On the other hand, supporters for Prop 23, which is nicknamed by them the CALIFORNIA JOBS INITIATIVE, include:

Valero	$4,065,636.60
Tesoro Companies	$1,540,636.60
Flint Hills Resources	$1,000,000
Marathon Petroleum Company LLC	$500,000
Adam Smith Foundation	$498,000
Occidental Petroleum	$300,000
National Petrochemical and Refiners Association	$100,000
Tower Energy Group	$200,000
World Oil Corp	$100,000
Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association	$100,000
Southern Counties Oil (Total Energy Products)	$50,000
California Trucking Association	$50,000
Frontier Oil	$50,000
Murray Energy	$30,000
Berry Petrochemical	$25,000
Boyett Petroleum (Stan Boylett & Son)	$25,000
California State Pipes Trade Association	$25,000
Caminol Management	$25,000
Holly Corporation	$25,000
Robinson Oil	$25,000
J.G. Boswell Company	$25,000

See a trend here?? OIL, OIL AND MORE OIL money. There has to be a better way…

Please post your thoughts on this very timely issue!!

One woman's search to find greening in the world today …

Category Archives: clean energy