SuperGreen - Eco Ideas

[reka5matik]

does anyone here actually have solar power? my friend's parents have it on there house for power during the day then switch on the power cells at night that have been charged during day.

[coalessence]

it is argued recycling most goods has little environmental impact...and the methods used to recycle are actually just as damaging as the methods to produce them in the first place...

heres something to snack on ...

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1444391672891013193&hl=en

[C0C0]

all i can manage to do is buy "eco friendly" totes over n over again

[shekki]

i find setting the temp while im away helps significantly. like setting the temp to 84-85 during the summer and 65-66 during the winter.

[VuONG]

ARE YOU FUCKING RETARDED?

proven by who? and did they factor in the cost of producing petroleum products to replace the ones we just throw out?

did the land usage or the leeching of chemicals into soil and water occur to them?

was it based on more bullshit computer models?

did they factor in that im fucking sick of bullshit computer models?

the question is are you retard? There is no need to resort to name calling .. but its people like you who fuel dumb programs and listen to whatever the tv tells you. Prolly didnt even take 10 seconds to google the answer before throwing out stupid comments.

its ok though the average person doesn't do this and thats why theirs people like george bush running America.

i work and learn in an industry where "GREEN is the hot word for everything." im not saying that im an expert or anything but when im in school and when i design anything i have this subject of suitability in mind.

Countless people have said that recycling is bull shit and it is a retard practice and is a failing government subsidized practice.

here is a little quote from the new york times:

In an article in The New York Times, John Tierney claimed that government mandated recycling wastes more resources than it saves. Some highlights from the article:

- In cases where recycling truly does save resources, such as with large scraps of aluminum, this will be reflected in market prices, and voluntary recycling will take place. Thus, there is no need for the government to mandate it.

- Tree farmers plant more trees than they cut down.

- Government mandated recycling is more expensive than putting the garbage into landfills, which means that this recycling uses up more resources than it saves.

Some small towns with landfills are happy to import garbage from other cities and states because it provides jobs and tax revenue.

- Today's modern landfills are much cleaner and safer, and much less likely to leak and pollute than the landfills of the past.

- Modern landfills often collect the methane produced by the decomposition of the biological wastes (which would have otherwise escaped into the atmosphere adding to global warming) and use the gas as fuel to produce electricity for the surrounding communities.

- Regarding the claim that the U.S. is running out of landfill space, Tierney wrote, "A. Clark Wiseman, an economist at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Wash., has calculated that if Americans keep generating garbage at current rates for 1,000 years, and if all their garbage is put in a landfill 100 yards deep, by the year 3000 this national garbage heap will fill a square piece of land 35 miles on each side. This doesn't seem a huge imposition in a country the size of America. The garbage would occupy only 5 percent of the area needed for the national array of solar panels proposed by environmentalists. The millennial landfill would fit on one-tenth of 1 percent of the range land now available for grazing in the continental United States. And if it still pains you to think of depriving posterity of that 35-mile square, remember that the loss will be only temporary. Eventually, like previous landfills, the mounds of trash will be covered with grass and become a minuscule addition to the nation's 150,000 square miles of parkland."

proven by who? to name a few...

- The New York Times, John Tierne

- The Heartland Institute, Jerry Taylor

- The Chair of Political Science at Duke University, Michael Munger

did they factor in the cost of producing petroleum products to replace the ones we just throw out?

when you say petroleum im assume you mean any kind of petroleum from the bottle itself and the transport of the bottle

petroleum production is actually 2-3 times more that that if you were just to make a brand new bottle. lets say you have a recycled bottled

1.) the bottle is made (petroleum).

2.) then you use the bottle and recycle it in a different container (petroleum).

3.) then you must have a separate trash truck (petroleum) to pick up the recycled plastic.

4.) this plastic must be turned into useable plastic (petroleum).

5.) Then it must be transported again to the factory which will make the plastic bottle (more petroleum).

6.) then you make the bottle (more petroleum)

on the other hand if you make a fresh new bottle there's only the initial cost.

its not quite this simple but you get the point.

did the land usage or the leeching of chemicals into soil and water occur to them?

1.) most modern landfills are very safe and most studies proven that they have less then 1% of failure rate.

2.) Also landfills produce methane and use this energy to power near by cities.

3.) Also after a landfill is full because the land is not reuseable, they are turned into pakrs. This means more trees more shurbs more everything green that stores carbon.

was it based on more bullshit computer models?

im not sure, i took the facts i know from multiple sources.. so im sure someone might of used a computer model

yea, you could call me retard. but at less i'm not a lemming.

I'm not saying that recycling is bad. I even said that it was a good idea, but like most green things its not quite effective or efficient yet. For insists recycling aluminum is very good and this is why its profitable.

Go hop in your Prius, buy your food from Whole Foods and think your pro-env.

O and don't even get me started on that organic food...

[BTT]

If you can find the name or link toward the add on, let me know. I've found a few, but i don't really care for the layouts.

i think its called stylish.

and you get the stuff on userstyles.org

[gimmegimme]

I'm all for going green, but some of you people need to stop drinking the kool-aid on a few things. Blackle for instance, a few weeks ago google made their page black, and this was followed by them saying it doesn't actually save energy, it might even use more. this is the post.

I try and bike to places instead of driving, and pushed for the parents to replace incandescents with CFLs. I feel like I could do more though

I wasn't sure about the Blackle thing either, but I figured it couldn't hurt.

We'll have to agree to disagree on some points...like the recycling issue. I don't know the answer either way, and I doubt anyone on superfuture has the authority to straighten it out.

I personally try my best to buy things with as little packaging as possible, and recycle the rest. Whether or not I'm right or wrong, I don't know, but I do know that in many municipalities, you have no choice but to recycle. Where my parents live, everything has to go in a separate large bin, and if you put a recycleable in the garbage bin, they can see it, and they won't pick up your garbage.

[rome1]

I actually keep all of my plastic items in boxes until I have about a months worth or so and then drag them three towns over so they can be recycled...because where I live only recycles glass and metal, not plastic.

I constantly don't wash my jeans in efforts to conserve water...has nothing to do with the fading properties or anything like that.

I keep the A/C and heat off depending on season for the whole time I'm not home, yeah its uncomfortable when I get there but only for about 1/2 hour or so.

energy saving lightbulbs...everyroom.

Usually try to do as much as I can because every little bit helps even if it seems like it doesn't at times.

[Guest]

the question is are you retard? There is no need to resort to name calling .. but its people like you who fuel dumb programs and listen to whatever the tv tells you. Prolly didnt even take 10 seconds to google the answer before throwing out stupid comments.

its ok though the average person doesn't do this and thats why theirs people like george bush running America.

i work and learn in an industry where "GREEN is the hot word for everything." im not saying that im an expert or anything but when im in school and when i design anything i have this subject of suitability in mind.

Countless people have said that recycling is bull shit and it is a retard practice and is a failing government subsidized practice.

here is a little quote from the new york times:

In an article in The New York Times, John Tierney claimed that government mandated recycling wastes more resources than it saves. Some highlights from the article:

- In cases where recycling truly does save resources, such as with large scraps of aluminum, this will be reflected in market prices, and voluntary recycling will take place. Thus, there is no need for the government to mandate it.

- Tree farmers plant more trees than they cut down.

- Government mandated recycling is more expensive than putting the garbage into landfills, which means that this recycling uses up more resources than it saves.

Some small towns with landfills are happy to import garbage from other cities and states because it provides jobs and tax revenue.

- Today's modern landfills are much cleaner and safer, and much less likely to leak and pollute than the landfills of the past.

- Modern landfills often collect the methane produced by the decomposition of the biological wastes (which would have otherwise escaped into the atmosphere adding to global warming) and use the gas as fuel to produce electricity for the surrounding communities.

- Regarding the claim that the U.S. is running out of landfill space, Tierney wrote, "A. Clark Wiseman, an economist at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Wash., has calculated that if Americans keep generating garbage at current rates for 1,000 years, and if all their garbage is put in a landfill 100 yards deep, by the year 3000 this national garbage heap will fill a square piece of land 35 miles on each side. This doesn't seem a huge imposition in a country the size of America. The garbage would occupy only 5 percent of the area needed for the national array of solar panels proposed by environmentalists. The millennial landfill would fit on one-tenth of 1 percent of the range land now available for grazing in the continental United States. And if it still pains you to think of depriving posterity of that 35-mile square, remember that the loss will be only temporary. Eventually, like previous landfills, the mounds of trash will be covered with grass and become a minuscule addition to the nation's 150,000 square miles of parkland."

proven by who? to name a few...

- The New York Times, John Tierne

- The Heartland Institute, Jerry Taylor

- The Chair of Political Science at Duke University, Michael Munger

did they factor in the cost of producing petroleum products to replace the ones we just throw out?

when you say petroleum im assume you mean any kind of petroleum from the bottle itself and the transport of the bottle

petroleum production is actually 2-3 times more that that if you were just to make a brand new bottle. lets say you have a recycled bottled

1.) the bottle is made (petroleum).

2.) then you use the bottle and recycle it in a different container (petroleum).

3.) then you must have a separate trash truck (petroleum) to pick up the recycled plastic.

4.) this plastic must be turned into useable plastic (petroleum).

5.) Then it must be transported again to the factory which will make the plastic bottle (more petroleum).

6.) then you make the bottle (more petroleum)

on the other hand if you make a fresh new bottle there's only the initial cost.

its not quite this simple but you get the point.

did the land usage or the leeching of chemicals into soil and water occur to them?

1.) most modern landfills are very safe and most studies proven that they have less then 1% of failure rate.

2.) Also landfills produce methane and use this energy to power near by cities.

3.) Also after a landfill is full because the land is not reuseable, they are turned into pakrs. This means more trees more shurbs more everything green that stores carbon.

was it based on more bullshit computer models?

im not sure, i took the facts i know from multiple sources.. so im sure someone might of used a computer model

yea, you could call me retard. but at less i'm not a lemming.

I'm not saying that recycling is bad. I even said that it was a good idea, but like most green things its not quite effective or efficient yet. For insists recycling aluminum is very good and this is why its profitable.

Go hop in your Prius, buy your food from Whole Foods and think your pro-env.

O and don't even get me started on that organic food...

i dont watch tv

[pete mcstunna]

T Booooooone Pickenzzzzz

[FUCK]

vuong, you have some interesting points, but do keep in mind that there are plenty of landfills that do not use the methane for power/simply burn it and there have been many that have gone up in the last 10 years that continue this method.

Its true that many landfills are used for parks or golf courses, but there is a rather large time gap until the land is usable, which means (and i have forgotten the exact amount of time) the land won't be available for at least 30 years.

also lets keep in mind that about 50% of the wastes in landfills are paper products, which is probably one of the easiest materials recycled.

I actually took an environmental themes class for a gen ed requirement and what i gathered was recycling was flawed, but it is the better alternative and, of course, the best alternative is to simply, if possible, reuse the item!

Again, like others have been saying, lets not bicker, but discuss!

[gimmegimme]

Extreme ideas:

Live in a drain pipe:

Drive a hemp-composite Lotus:

Insteall a wind turbine in the desert:

[broneck]

Extremely awesome ideas:

Live in a drain pipe:

Drive a hemp-composite Lotus:

Insteall a wind turbine in the desert:

yes. they are .

[FUCK]

Who designed those drainpipe units? Pretty rad. Lots of great super-efficiency prefab housing being designed too. Needless to say, they are extremely green.

[masuerte]

Yeah, I actually picked up vegetarianism again, because I digest it better and I've really felt I should try harder to live a more sustainable lifestyle.

Been composting for about 3 years and use the soil in my vegetable garden, which is always rad to reap the fruits and veggies that have thrived off of my wasted materials.

I should really superfuture less and start tending to a garden or something in the back yard. It always amazes me how much fruit and veggies you can produce in a small yard.

[photo]

Vuong

Interested to hear about your issues with organic food and construction practices. I a currently doing summer construction and it seems abit absurd some times how they go about doing things.

[gimmegimme]

Who designed those drainpipe units? Pretty rad. Lots of great super-efficiency prefab housing being designed too. Needless to say, they are extremely green.

It's actually a hotel in Austria called Dasparkhotel.

[FUCK]

I should really superfuture less and start tending to a garden or something in the back yard. It always amazes me how much fruit and veggies you can produce in a small yard.

Yeah. I have a little flower box on my back steps filled with several types of lettuce. It grows back so quickly and its really great to be able to pick the leaves i want to use, rinse them and eat them right away. And having different lets me use one or two while letting the other two grow back.

Also, mint and beebalm are both very easy to grow and take relatively little care, but the leaves make an amazingly refreshing iced tea. The beebalm leaf adds a really unique, but enjoyable flavor.

It's actually a hotel in Austria called Dasparkhotel.

Thanks for the name. I'll check it out.

[readytoignite]

filter tap water instead of bottled still

use a seltzer kit instead of bottled seltzer / soda (this is actually awesome )

enroll in csa if possible to get your veg and meat

notice 2 & 3 (and possibly 1) are more gastronomically satisfying

[popPOPpop]

There's actually a new major popping up under the engineering department at my university called Green Engineering. I think it's interesting how this "going green" is growing.

[gimmegimme]

Sanyo's Eneloop batteries can be charged up to 1000 times, and can then be recycled when they're no longer good. Not sure how much they normally go for, but a pack of them is on sale here:

http://www.momastore.org/museum/moma/ProductDisplay_Rechargeable%20Battery%20Kit_10451_10001_47775_-1_11548_11552_null_shop_

I like the C and D battery adapters...you can slide in a an AA and use it in something that takes larger batteries. Wouldn't last as long, but would weigh much less.

[gimmegimme]

I added links to the sites/blogs I read in the first post...any recommended additions?

[FUCK]

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/look/prefabs-galore-at-dwell-on-design-052769

apartmenttherapy mostly deals with design, but also has some green articles throughout. Dwell magazine has been heavily focused on green prefab lately. I should have some old issues lying around. I'll try and get some scans if i can find them.

Either way, there are some cool and lame examples in the above link.

Gimme...nice links! I'll see if i can add to that collection.

Edit:

woah. I didn't know re-nest and apartment therapy were connected? Awesome!

[PQRS7]

flick your cigarette butts into the street instead of into the pond or @ animals

[masuerte]

Oh yeah, almost forgot about how fucked we are unless we start building billions of bee-replacement-drones... cuz yeah the bees r gonna be extinct soon.

445m_ohiWCM

7m5vt07W2n4

[gimmegimme]

^ that sux...I like honey. I just discovered these little honey tablets that replace sugar cubes. Good stuffs.

[chrisbunnington]

eating locally can't be stressed enough. it's not too difficult of an adjustment to make for most people to start buying their produce from a local farmer's market and the personal and environmental benefits are huge. people in general should make more of an effort to really be aware of where their food comes from, and this applies especially to meat. all meats should be from naturally raised animals- this means grass fed cows, pastured chickens, etc.

furthermore, avoiding the grocery store is another step. it is convenient, yes, but grocery stores tend to sell destructive imported produce, and disgusting processed "food" products made primarily from processed corn and soybeans (two overplanted crops that wreak a surprising amount of havoc on food chains).

having your own garden is a great idea also. i really should try to make more use of the space that i've got, because i have quite a bit, but right now i am growing a few herbs and it is great.

don't overdo it on the laundry.

drink tap water. if you are into bottles, get ones bottled from a nearby source.

get a bike, use it.

[le_chic_garcon]

I never washz my shitz. If it don't smell I re-wear. If it smell I wash. I think that green pesticides are really smart idea. The use of pesticides is terrible for things.

Solar power is legit. I want that shit.

[le_chic_garcon]

http://www.shaklee.com/homecare1.html

Anyone think these work? I heard they are good, but not so sure.