Archive for the ‘Green Economy’ Category
February 6th, 2009
Greener Gadgets Design Competition: You Get to Vote
Stumble it!
The 2nd Annual Greener Gadgets Design Competition is on, and there are lots of compelling, interesting, and just plain kooky designs in the mix. Core 77 design magazine and Greener Gadgets host this competition to inspire outstanding design innovations for greener electronics. The top 50 entries are published online for voting and commenting. You can vote for your favorites. Voting ends February 20, so get on it!
One cool product is the eMetric. This is a wireless office power management system. Designer Jason Deperro contends that the eMetric “allows teams of conscientious workers to control and learn about their electronics’ energy consumption - saving energy and money.” We like the idea very much that teams of folks could instantly track their usage and then work to lower their power consumption. It’s e-Nifty.
One design we also like is the Indoor Drying Rackby Rob Podell. First of all, it’s not electronic, so that’s cool. Also, we’re big fans of air-drying laundry here at Low Impact Living (remember that your clothes dryer is one of the worst power-sucking, inefficient appliances in your home), so we think this drying rack is pretty nifty. It folds down from the wall and creates an aerated kind of table for drying. Easy, attractive and electricity-free!
We also dig the CompostAll. This kitchen device, designed by frog design, is a replacement for the home in-sink garbage disposal. It allows food waste to be composted instead of sent down the drain. The CompostAll saves mulched food waste in a removable container under the sink. Frog design claims that the devise provides a convenient, discreet, and odor-free location for food waste. What’s also pretty cool is that it comes with an alert light on the sinktop that tells the user the container is full. Then you can just take the container out from under the sink and put the contents into your outdoor compost bin. You already have one of those, yes?
In the kooky column, I’ll add the Guilty Wallet. Ruhel Mohammed has designed a series of wallets aimed at helping people cut our consumer culture (which he spells in ALL CAPS). He makes the interesting argument that we need fewer green gadgets and instead should all buy less. He goes on, “We spend for so many reasons, but it is undeniably true that we spend through one of these vessels: GREED, LUST, PRIDE, ROTH, SLOTH, GLUTTONY and ENVY. Although spending and debt are the foundations of the capitalist society, we should be careful of excessive spending or GREED.” Wow, don’t get Ruhel involved in a debate at a cafe– it will not be a short discussion. His wallets may not have much of an impact, but they do make you think about spending for a brief moment.
Popularity: 5% [?]
February 4th, 2009
Green Cars and Mean Cars: ACEEE Report
Each year the ACEEE (American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy) produces their Green Book, in which they rate the greenest and meanest cars for the year. They have just released their 2009 Green Book and there’s lot of great information on green cars and really mean cars.
They give each car a “green score” and not surprisingly the Toyota Prius is at the top of the Greenest Cars list. The Prius gets the highest score, with 53 points. Right on the Prius’ heels is the Honda Civic Hybrid with 51 points. Interestingly two non-hybrids come in 3rd and 4th position– they Toyota Yaris and the Honda Fit, respectively.
How many American auto makers’ models score in the top twelve greenest cars? Oh only three, sadly. The Ford Escape Hybrid is #5, the Ford Ranger is #10 and the Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid is #12. (Do the American car companies really deserve a bailout? I guess that’s a different topic.)
Now on to the Meanest Cars. How many American cars are in this top twelve? Oh that would be EIGHT. The Hummer is still the reigning champ of all things disgusting. The GMC Yukon is the 3rd worst. The GMC Sierra and the Jeep Grand Cherokee are also shining examples of environmental destruction. The American Worst of the Worst are joined by some ridiculous European cars as well– including the Lamborghini Murcielago, the Mercedes-Benz G55, and the Maybach 57S. I like to call the Maybach the “May-blech.”
Popularity: 3% [?]
January 26th, 2009
Update on Green Aspects of President Obama’s Stimulus Package
Details are finally emerging on how President Obama’s stimulus program intersects with energy efficiency and green building. The House of Representatives recently published a draft of the plan (shown here), and there’s significant money allocated to green initiatives. Depending on how you slice it, at least $50 billion will go to green-related programs. Some of the highlights include the following:
- $11.0 billion to fund the development of a “smart” electrical grid;
- $7.9 billion in energy-related grants to states;
- $6.2 billion in subsidies to low-income households for energy audits and weatherization;
- $2.5 billion to demonstrate the feasibility of carbon capture and storage technologies;
- $2.0 billion to fund research and development into advanced batteries, biomass fuels ($0.8B+) and geothermal technologies ($0.4B+);
- $1.0 billion to guarantee loans to develop advanced batteries;
- $0.5 billion to fund water reclamation and reuse projects.
The good news is that, all in all, these projects should go a long way towards jumpstarting a low-carbon economy.
The bad news? At first glance, there’s not a huge amount here that will directly benefit individual consumers and homeowners looking to green their homes. The $6.2 billion in weatherization funds will help, but that only applies to a subset of the population:
- It applies to households that are at or below 200% of the poverty level. For a family of four, that works out to be somewhere in the neighborhood of $44,000 per year of income.
- The funds don’t flow directly to the family, but instead from the Federal Government down to the states and then directly to weatherization agencies (who can be either local government or nonprofit organizations). These organizations provide services to about 60,000 homes a year, so this program will have to grow by 20-30x in order to meet President Obama’s goal of weatherizing 2,000,000 homes. It’s hard to see that happening quickly unless private sector service providers are brought into the program.
States have some flexibility to customize their programs, so we hope that the range of families and service providers involved is larger than this. And, there’s always hope that the states will broaden the reach of the stimulus package depending on how they spend their slice of the $7.9 billion allocated to state grant programs. Those details, though, have yet to be worked out.
We’ll keep you posted, of course, as things develop!
Popularity: 5% [?]
January 23rd, 2009
Recession Takes a Bite Out Of Green Projects
It’s pretty clear that we’re in uncharted economic waters these days. Unemployment numbers just get worse and worse, stock portfolios continue to tank, and companies formerly at the pinnacle of the US economy flirt with bankruptcy.
At Low Impact Living, we have a pretty strong view into how small green businesses are doing out there, and it isn’t pretty. Part of that has to do with the housing market. New green homes aren’t getting built. Major remodels that often occur when people are prepping their homes for sale or have just purchased a new one are few and far between. And even medium-sized projects are hard to fund due to the evaporation of home equity.
But there’s another disturbing driver that’s starting to rear its ugly head: the shutdown of major green infrastructure projects by governments across the country.
California often leads the way when it comes to major green investments, with CA voters funding billions in bond measures over the past ten years for environmental projects. In mid-December, all of that came to a screeching halt: construction projects across the state were put on indefinite hold to the detriment of the environment. Multi-million dollar projects ranging from urban stormwater treatment to watershed restoration to dam removal are affected, as are the jobs and ecosystems that depend on them. (disclaimer: I’m involved with several projects that were affected).
In New York, the governor’s proposed budget for the next fiscal year cuts off all state funding for zoos, botanical gardens and aquariums. In addition to protecting threatened and endangered species, these facilities often serve as the only open and green space for residents of urban areas. Check out the Wildlife Conservation Society’s funny but poignant plea below:
In Florida, the legislature has proposed suspending the $300M / year Florida Forever program, which is used to fund the acquisition and protection of natural lands throughout the state. Also on the chopping block: $10M per year to clean up the state’s waterways.
And in Colorado, the governor recommended cutting Colorado’s Solar Incentive Program rebates in half and making major cuts to the state’s wastewater and drinking water facilities inspection and groundwater monitoring programs.
I’m sure that you have examples from governments big and small near you (and if you do, please share them via comments below!). The consequences of these cuts are pretty clear: lost jobs, lost open space, and a dirtier environment. Let’s hope that President Obama’s stimulus plan ends up filling these gaps before even more damage is done.
Popularity: 6% [?]
