2010 Ford Flex to Use Straw-Based Plastic

Ford Motor Company announced that it will be using a wheat-straw-reinforced plastic in the interior storage bins of the 2010 Ford Flex. While this might seem like a baby step — and it is — Ford says the change to a 20% wheat-straw plastic will reduce petroleum use by 20,000 pounds per year and CO2 emissions by 30,000 pounds per year. The wheat straw itself is a byproduct of processing the grain.

These numbers are drops in the pollution bucket, but you have to start somewhere. Ford says it will be using the biomaterial in other places and other vehicles in...

 

Do You Waste Energy by Leaving Your TV On When You Leave the Room?

Sometimes the greenest way to use your electronics is to turn them off when you're not using them. But we're human, and we get distracted, don't we? We get up from the TV to make a sandwich, and then the phone rings, and then the dog starts begging for a walk, and the next thing you know, the TV has been on for an hour and no one has been...

 

Eco-Friendly Christmas Stockings

It’s never too soon to start thinking about a green Christmas. Once fall hits Christmas can sneak up on you quickly and the more prepared you are the less stressful the holidays will be. Also, if you need special gear, like stockings, it’s good to have a chance to look around. It’s not easy to just walk into any store and find eco-friendly stocking options.

Following are some great choices for...

 

Green flea prevention and treatment

If you’ve got a furry friend then more than likely you’ve dealt with fleas. Fleas are little trouble makers for sure, but before you resort to toxic treatments that can get all over your green home, try some natural prevention and treatment.

Prevention first: Don’t wait until you’ve got fleas to treat the issue. You can minimize or kill off flea problems with the following tactics…

Your pet’s diet and exercise routine...

 

Organic Thanksgiving Beverages

When planning your green Thanksgiving menu, don’t forget about the drinks! It’s easy to keep it green nowadays because there’s a wide array of yummy organic beverages, perfectly suited to Thanksgiving. Here are some ideas.

Organic wine: Many companies offer great organic wines nowadays, and for less money then you might think. Some choices include…

The Organic Wine Company Frey Vinyards Visit the Organic Wine Journal for more advice.

Organic sparkles: Santa Cruz Organics TeaZer...

 

Vegetarian Thanksgiving Menu

We recently looked at why you should go vegetarian more often - meat = bad eco-footprint. Thanksgiving is actually a really easy meal to go vegetarian with and that means a super green Thanksgiving. Families tend to serve more veggie dishes on Thanksgiving already so losing the turkey is the big challenge. But you can do it. If you’re considering a vegetarian or even vegan Thanksgiving below are some helpful...

 

Are Pay-As-You-Throw trash programs fair?

As of 2006, the last time the EPA took down stats, about 7,095 communities were participating in Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) programs. PAYT programs are unit pricing or variable-rate pricing programs for trash disposal. Basically, residents are charged for the collection of their solid waste, i.e. what ends up in their trash can instead of a flat rate. For one thing this creates an economic incentive to recycle and so far programs...