Bioplastics came about due to a need to find less pollutive ways to create plastics.

It is possible due to the strength of plant fibers at the microscopic level.

DuPont, Toyota Motor Corp, and Cereplast are pouring money into research and development. Bioplastics are currently made into anything one can turn polyurethane into. Styrofoam products, tupperware, among other products are being made to some degree with manioc, wheat, or potato based bioplastic.

There is research and success coming at this from two different vantage points. One method is trying to change the plants so that theyll mimic plastic. The other is following the nature of the plant to work with its most plastic like attributes.

The biggest producer of bioplastic is Innovia Films. They produce plastic packaging. They employ twelve hundred people around the globe. They produce one hundred twenty thousand tons of bioplastic food wrap a year.

One of the major areas of research is to find alternatives to phthalates that come from natural sources. Phthalates are what make PVC pipes flexible, but they are harmful to the human reproductive system. Phthalates imitate hormones.

Cellulose, starch, polylactic acid (PLA), poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB), and polyamide 11 (PA11) are the most common types of bioplastics.

Thermoplastic starch that is derived from maize and potatoes is used in making capsules for medicines taken orally.

PLA is used in Foil, computer parts, and phone casings. The Freedonia Group predicts that this form of bioplastic will be in most demand by 2010.

PHB is used in ropes, bank notes, car parts, and packaging.

Vegetable oil is turned into PA 11. It is used in car fuel systems because it is resistant to heat. It is sold commercially as Rislan.

PHA is the neatest thing on the market. The stuff is created using natural sugars and oils that have been broken down by microbes.

Cellulose-based plastics come from wood pulp. They are used to make wrappers, plastic bags, things of that nature.

Some of these plastics are compostable. Others are bio-resins, which are combinations of bioplastics and traditional plastics.

Bill Collis, CEO of bioplastics startup Trellis Earth says that inorder to not put an added demand on food crops, bioplastics need to find other vegetable sources that dont come from food resources or the land they grow on.

As the change is talked about everywhere, manufacturers of both traditional film, and biofilm can see the shift from traditional plastics tocheaper, cleaner, neater bioplastics, according to Frank Ernst of Treofan; a company that produces both types of plastic.

Sainsburys from the United Kingdom converted five hundred of its product lines to be bioplastics based.

A company leading the way in bioplastic recycling is Interface Fabric (now known as “true textiles”). They have been able to recycle one hundred percent of its waste.

The neatest thing is that when bioplastics degrade in seawater, they become food for fish rather than poison.

With the demand for plastics in the subcontinent of India reaching eight million tones of plastics in the trade year of 2006-07; the demand worldwide for bioplastics is clean. Many countries have a greater demand than India. Its good to know that plants as plastics has become a reality through bioplastics.

Contributed by David Allison

Modern living with regard to life-style comfort. This comfort is centrally caused by the use of environmentally friendly technology.

A progressive advent of the tradition of communal living, the ecovillage focuses on a palatable, sustainable transition from modern life, needed by people who want to detach from an oil (addicted) based lifestyle without giving up the creature comforts.

The benefit of this slight shift in the support network, bases for a lifestyle beneficial to a bioregion, involving both the natural species and the humans who live there.

Ecovillages are linked via the Internet and form a new kind of international community.

This or these communities are communicating to establish safety and success for the people doing this ecological research in infra-structural environmental change. This interconnected dialog via the Internet is a force that keeps these communities from being labeled as one of those weird cult things.

One of the major accountability think tanks is the GEN (Global Ecovillage Network).

Each participating group tests its process with the success of other peer villages who have similar social and ecological goals. This is done both with respect to and apart from possible ethnic, religious, or other differences.

The modern concept of the ecovillage stands out from both nuclear family household life style, and the of community, in that it focuses normalcy for both the participants and the environment.

The social component in the political thinking of the ecovillage is not a means to do away with what works in modern life, instead, it is a way of taking a look at what could serve a bioregions balance while living comfortably for all the people involved; in order to achieve the ecological goal as well as the social ones.

The ecovillage as a modern research movement has almost nothing to do with its spiritually based counter part: The stereotypical religious commune.

The ecovillage is centered rather, around ecological awareness. The people who live in these communities are just like people who live in regular neighborhoods. By that, it is meant, that these communities are not one of those weird cult things.

Rather, the focus is defined as a partial paradigm shift toward effective use of renewable energy sources. Sources such as communal gardening, bio-swells, shared transportation, solar, geothermal, hydropower, wet land management in the areas of construction, irrigation and other community support systems.

There is a focus on the consideration of social nature and diversity in spiritual well being of the participating individuals. An example of this is children having a safe place to play; men, women and children feeling safe in the community where people are or partially-interdependent than they would be outside the community in a traditional neighborhood sense.

This is, to support participants in continuing to want to be a part of the research that is being done and taught at colleges and universities so that the greater global community can improve general ecological formation or reformation (that is upgrading of) its most environmentally sound practices.

The type of individual that might consider renting an apartment or buying a home in an ecovillage is a person or group of people who want to work at living a modern life style, with the benefit of a village of people who know them; and are interconnected with their well being and with the common goal to create a micro community that is not dependent on oil addiction.

Generally speaking these communities range in size between 50-150 persons. This is considered the ideal size for a community to be able to have successful participants without regard to their personal, ethnic, religious background or lifestyle choice.

This way each community member feels comfortable with the other community members. If the individual is happy in the community and does not feel spiritually threatened by the other members, then socially, the community is cohesive.

This results in community members transition into the more ecologically sound infrastructure with ease and less unnecessary personal or social sacrifices- that usually cause a community to fail. This is based on the GEN research done in communities worldwide.

The GEN has a forty two-page questionnaire that each community member can fill out anonymously. The GEN both compiles the data and also reports back to the community how well they are doing at achieving their ecological goal, and social comfort-ability of the participants.

There is a model called an eco-municipality. An eco-municipality ensures that smaller communities have the trading power of the larger group without loosing smaller community goal effective accountability practices. The largest of which has two thousand participants.

So the transition from something as small as Try-On Farm in Portland, OR– to something as open as EcoVillage At Ithaca, NY–to something as practical as the rebuilding of Greensburg Kansas into an ecocity; is a natural process. It shows the global effectiveness of this kind of experimental global research.

Ecovillages as a minor lifestyle shift are a tool for ecological and socially sustainable research. It is a way to improve on the models we have; and do so with minimal impact on the environment, using renewable sources of energy.

Research with Ecovillages, is clearing a footpath of best practices for every community to live comfortably and in tune with the land around them, as well as with each other, in the decades to come.

Contributed by David Allison

As we move into an era of higher grades of sustainability, such as the concern for more thermodynamically fit homes, like Zero Energy Homes, we come prepared with an arsenal of consumer products that make all the difference.

As always, 3M comes with a creative solution to conserving how much energy we spend on winter heating, with an install-it-yourself door and window frame insulation that is not only simple to apply, but aesthetically pleasing to the human eye.

The series of 3M door and window warmer kits are so transparent that the insulation itself is almost invisible from two yards, and completely so at three yards away.

Sealing windows and doors with the 3M solution to this modern concern is unique, because it can easily be done by the homeowner; without removing the doors or windows themselves, and with nothing more than a tape measure, a hair dryer and a pair of scissors as tools.

3M makes two different kits, one for doors and one for window and generally speaking, each kit should have enough insulation to cover the average fixture of each given kind, only one fixture per kit.

On the average, these kits cost anywhere from 17-25U$ each depending where you buy and how many, consumers however usually want to try sealing their patio doors first before buying lots of kits since its usually at the focus of the common living area and only costs about 17U$ for a door kit of this size.

Each kit comes with a large sheet of plastic and two roles of double sided tape.

After measuring the plastic to fit each side of the frame with a tape measure and cutting it in pieces according to the length of each face, the double sided tape is then applied to the first face and the first length of proper fitting plastic applied over that, heated with the hair dryer.

As each piece of plastic is heated against the applied tape of its given face, it will shrink down to fit snuggly against the frame surface and thereby eliminating drafts, cold air, invading condensation, a major source of heat loss in the home and consequently, can up the R-value by 90% on that window or door.

3M door and window warmer kits are a way to save on the energy your home uses in heating, by insulating frames with easy to install-it-yourself kits that make it convenient and affordable to be a little more sustainable.

The CC VIVID Plus LED light bulb has a standard cork screw socket, but with a ten year lifespan and like most clustered LED light bulbs of its category, is quickly becoming the trend in sustainable solutions to indoor/outdoor artificial lighting.

The LED is a directional light, that will last for a long time and works well with dimming mechanisms, but when clustered (such as this one with 36 LEDs), that directional lighting quantifies immensely.

CC VIVID Plus LED is made by C. Crane Company Inc., available in AC or DC, 120V AC (1.84 Watts) and 12V DC (2.5 Watts), 60 lumens, 36 LEDs, dispersed output, average bulb life of 60,000 hours (ten years), safe for outdoor/indoor/small space use, with a two year warranty, measures 3.25 x 2.25 and ships at one pound.

Energy efficient, dispersed higher light output, perfect for accent lighting, reading, porches, smaller rooms, hallways, cubbyholes, or wherever needed most around the home; clustered LED light bulbs such as the CC VIVID Plus LED light bulb are a great way to improve the environmental friendliness of your home for a more self-reliant way of life that starts with your pocket book.

When we look at the future that is coming tomorrow, and we realize that something must be done, when our hearts are screaming for change, we look to a strategy for that change that not only makes sense, but works, and has been working for a while.

Europe, North America and Australia are all on the band wagon now, and they werent teaching this stuff to architects twenty years ago; but now, everybody wants it, and sustainability is in demand.

But for an area that has a plethora of possibilities, the professional, or even the average home owner, can become baffled from the information overload that comes from such a multidisciplinary area.

This book shows a deeper understanding of design issues that occur in this field, especially when we talk about actually delivering on a project.

Be they small dwellings or large commercial buildings; sustainable development, site, ecology, community, culture, health, materials, energy and water all need to be contemplated and the bigger picture needs to be understood as a whole and Strategies for Sustainable Architecture takes us through that understanding with precise examples of projects that have been there and done that.

This 306-page paperback, written by Paoloa Sassi, has over 400 illustrations, was first published by Taylor and Francis in July of 2006, measuring 10.8 x 8.6 x 0.8 and ships at 2.6 pounds.

If you want to make a change for the better, for a future that is coming sooner rather than later and you are looking for better strategies for sustainable architecture, this book was written just for you, with an eye on a better quality of life for everyone on Earth.

Mini hydro-electric, wind, solar, rechargeable electric automotives, on-grid, off-grid, suburban or urban; Home Power Magazine is about reaching the maximum of renewable efficiency for each and every home owner.

This is done through time-tested technologies, while simultaneously linking business owners, homeowners and renewable energy professionals to exchange system performance, installations, design and equipment experience.

By promoting this exchange, cutting-edge technology and a renewable energy industry have evolved, replacing the polluting fossil fuels with infinite supplies of renewable energy.

Home Power Magazine is about helping the homeowner make fiscally sound and informed decisions concerning their energy use and generation, in order to be able to experience a wider range of benefits that only renewable energy can offer, both for the collective and the individual alike.

For the residential sustainable developer, Green Builder Magazine is an authoritative voice with recommendations on design, products and practices, while complete with news, updates, legislative issues and legal issues.

Profiles of other green builders as well as reviews of classic and recent construction practices, business, books and simultaneously providing advice on how to sell ones self as a green builder; this is the leading magazine in residential green building.

This magazine keeps full tabs on the latest trends and technology in your field with a feature article for both those new in the field and those who have been sustainable for years as something new is always popping up and those things that have been forgotten by time are being quickly revived once again.

For those businesses or private contractors interested in residential sustainable development, Green Builder Magazine has the latest information, helping us all achieve self-reliance and energy efficiency in the home, for a more sustainable quality of life.

There is a lot of theory out there, but for those who actually want to see exactly how it is done, not by a scholar, but by somebody who actually works with sustainable agriculture as their lifes blood; Acres USA Magazine was made for the real farmer, looking to do things in accordance to a more self-sufficient tomorrow that improves this nations quality of life.

Value-added processing, crop-specific advice, organic certification (and marketing), government regulations (that affect you), alternative crop marketing, insect control methods, composting, soil fertility management, rotational grazing, cover cropping and many other topics for the entrepreneur eco-agriculturist are always feature articles.

Acres USA Magazine comes as a tabloid format (newspaper) publication that is not only written by real farmers, but also sponsored by real farmers making itself a more ecologically friendly alternative to the slik wealthy magazines out there (plus its easily composted or used as mulch).

For the best publication in the states on eco-agriculture, Acres U.S.A. Magazine focuses on ecological and economically sustainable agriculture for a more self-reliant country that does not depend on foreign oil, but rather, teaches us how to do this stuff, with less theory and more action.

Harvested with great cost, usually at the sacrifice of underground caves, some of natures most precious environments.

That gray powder that acts as the buildings most efficient glue may be older than the continent itself, so by reading books like this, and doing it ourselves, we can be certain to use it as wisely as possible, like a warrior society, that protects, both in war and peace.

The comparative price tag on concrete however is not like the price tag on oil, it doesnt effect our pockets directly, but the fact is, civilization needs to start recycling and making the best possible use of concrete, whenever and wherever possible.

Maybe the concrete industry will catch up sooner rather than later, but right now, you need all the information you can muster, to do the job that builds both muscle and a powerful form of pride that relies on doing it ourselves.

Working with Concrete is an excellent book for those looking to build a concrete foundation themselves, complete with illustrations, photos and detailed explanation on all the ins and outs of this heavy-duty side of DIY construction work.

Waterproofing, drainage, formwork, reinforcement, excavation issues and even design, this book takes you through all the most important issues dealt with in doing concrete work yourself and making sure that it lasts.

This is an excellent guide to help you make sure that your concrete foundations and structures are completely prepared to take on the next 1000 years or so, without ever having to deal with leaks or weaknesses that can be overlooked by even the most professional urban contractors interested in cutting corners.

If you are the kind of person that cares about your environment, and want to make sure that your concrete work is done properly and cheaply with wisdom, to really withstand millenniums; Working with Concrete will give you all the notions of what needs to be done to make sure that everything is done properly the first time, allowing your structure to really take on the future, efficiently.

This 192-page paperback, was written by Rick Arnold, published by Taunton in May of 2003, measuring 10.8 x 8.4 x 0.5 and ships at 1 lb.

Working with Concrete will help you take control of your concrete laying projects, helping you make a choice about how one of Mother Natures most precious resources is smartly used.

Related Website:
Sustainable Development with Concrete - The Concrete Thinker is a web site to “help design professionals make sustainable design a reality”.

Living sustainably is not just about being self-reliant, its about all the factors that go into becoming a good steward of Earth, and that includes not just ones home, but ones neighborhood and all of the community around that neighborhood.

People. It all boils down to people spending resources and energy, then, throwing the leftovers back into nature, without even dealing with them in such a way as to replenish properly.

We need to take care of this planet, and we need to make sure that we take care of the people around us, because we can only make a change, if we all work together on this, and that means investing not only in our own homes, but in those around us.

One home, a neighborhood of homes, a whole community of homes; how can we give back in a beneficial way, to offset ecological footprints, or how can we make people aware of the dangers pollution brings?

Mick Winter gives pointers on how to get everyone involved, how to get everyone to share, together, as a whole, for a more sustainable way of life that starts now.

This 163-page paperback, written by Mick Winter, first published by Wetsong in March of 2007, measures 8.8 x 6 x 0.5 and ships at 7.2 ounces.

Short, clear-cut and concise information about sustainable living, for home, neighborhood and community, this book has low-cost ideas to help the reader save energy, money and the planet, all in one.

Long-term value, health, safety, efficiency, beauty, durability, energy costs, allergies or even concern for the old growth forests; whatever your worry with traditional building materials and manufacturer specifications, this fully indexed and easily navigated tome for those looking to build or remodel a residential home will find everything in one place.

Each chapter comes with tips and suggestions on what to look for in a green product and help you make your own choices when actually in the store and evaluating the potentials a product may or may not have, yourself.

Design, build or remodel with: eco-friendly distributors and retailers, renewable energy, furniture and furnishings, appliances, plumbing, electrical and lighting, mechanical systems, HVAC, painting and coatings, caulks and adhesives, interior finish and trim, flooring and floor coverings, insulation, doors and windows, roofing, exterior finish and trim, sheathing, structural systems and components, foundations, footers and slabs, decking, outdoor structures, sitework and landscaping, its all here and up-to-date with over 1,400 environmentally friendly products and materials.

This 338-page paperback, edited by Alex Wilson and Mark Piepkorn, published by New Society in its second edition as of July 2006 and mearsures 10.8 x 8.3 x 0.9.

Green Building Products is the perfect tool for those interested in building with offsetting materials, where you can find them, contact information and all phases of the residential construction for a more environmentally friendly approach.

Online Media:
U.S. Green Building Council

The energy flow of a building can be cut down to three important factors, heating, cooling and lighting, but what are the most sustainable designs for the building or structure you find yourself creating at any given moment?

Taking a look at sustainability from a practical viewpoint and taking into account the vernacular world of low tech as well as the modern world of synthetic materials, we can get the best of both worlds, creating beauty that is self-reliant, cheaper and in the long run, will do a better job than the conventional architecture we have inherited from the 20^th century alone.

Knowing exactly what decision to make, and knowing exactly where to make that decision is an important element in being an efficient architect, and one of the most important tools for decision making that we have as designers are our books.

In the realm of sustainability, those books with good bibliographies, indexes, annotated appendices and all those valuable formulas that make architecture the exact science that it is, will stay in our work libraries while, others, will get passed onto friends and colleges as presents.

Heating, Cooling, Lighting: Design Methods for Architects is one of those books that is going to stay in the work library of most professionals in this ever-expanding area that brings promises of a healthier society for the future.

This 640-page hardcover, written by Norbert Lechner, was published by Wiley in its second edition in December of 2000, measuring 11 x 8.5 x 1.5 and shipping at 3.6 pounds.

Techniques, building with greendesign, diagrams, decision making, conservation, mathematical formulas and understanding heating, cooling, lighting from a more stustainable point of view with design methods for architects, this isbasic reading for the undergraduate of today, looking to make a difference in the future.

Example:
The Sun Emulator - Solar responsive design.

All of us know what it would mean to get away from the troubles of city life, away from the constant onslaught of a consumer-society, but few of us are willing to take that courageous leap into the realm of rural living with simple back-to-our-roots homesteading.

It doesnt have to cost a lot nor does it demand a lot of experience or knowledge, to get back to our grass-roots, and the Nearings proved that back in 1932, when 28 year old Helen and 45 year old (married) Scott Nearing, a radical economics teacher, left the city for a more socialist way of life.

Perhaps every era has its enemies, its scapegoats, and for the 30s, it began with the commies and anyone labeled as a radical thinker could be blacklisted and banned from university campuses, which is what happened to Scott Hearing, whos adventure into the unknown world of homesteading began with a simple need, and flourished into a movement that has inspired so many of us into actually taking action.

Anyone interested in Living the Good Life, and making sure that it continues on into old peacefully and naturally, will find the Nearings journey noteworthy, beginning with this book and closing it with Scotts death in Loving and Leaving the Good Life by his wife Helen.

This 432-page paperback, written by Helen and Scott Nearing, published by Schocken in January of 1990, measures 9.6 x 5.2 x 1 and ships at 10.4 ounces.

If you are looking for a book that shows what happens when we choose to abandon the city for rural life on little experience, little money and little knowledge, these pioneers of the 60s and 70s homesteading movement, the Nearings, put everything they learned into one single classic volume; Living the Good Life, and Continuing the Good Life for future generations of self-reliance.

Websites:
The Good Life Center - Their mission is to “perpetuate the philosophies and lifeways promoted and exemplified by Helen and Scott Nearing”.

Life is an enigmatic question, but everyone agrees that it should be lived to its fullest, but not at the expense of future generations, so then, can we learn to be fulfilled by giving back to nature? Are we so infantile that we would willingly exploit the world until it is gone? No!

We will grow, and we will learn of new ways to live life to the fullest, helping Mother Nature take care of all forms of life, in partnership with the Earth. 

Barbara Berst Adams gives a small to large-scale rundown on what makes for a more organic mini-farm with sustainable concepts at the core, building local solutions for a global problem.

What can be grown? How do farmers get their crops to market? What sustainable methods are best for you? The author knows lives what she writes, taking care of own homestead, in harmony with the earth, giving back.

For tasty produce, incredible yields, flowers or orchards; whatever type of sustainable production you are looking for, with small acreage or even just the backyard, this book contains hundreds of real-life examples.

This 176-page paperback, written by Barbara Berst Adams, published by New World in May of 2005, measuring 8.8 x 6 x 0.5 and ships at 9.9 ounces.

Micro Eco-Farming: Prospering from Backyard to Small Acreage in Partnership with the Earth is an ecologically correct manual for those with a small plot of land, looking for sustainable solutions that make sense.

Related:
Center for Micro Eco-Farming Movement - Articles by Barbara Berst Adams & Kipp Davis

While many sustainable books just mention straw bale, it is sometimes enough to spark the human imagination into the far more elaborate, artistic opportunities that this distinct building form has to offer.

Children playing in the barn always get the idea of building forts, staircases and so on, but people like the authors, have taken this one step beyond childhood and into the realm of earth-friendly construction, with not only the knowledge, but also the experience from actually going out there and doing-it-themselves.

From thermodynamic efficiency, low labor costs, low material costs, to being environmentally friendly with highly renewable building materials, straw bale is making a comeback in todays world of self-reliance.

Dealing with insurers, building codes, diagrams and simple instructions for both the experienced and novice builders alike, with insightful knowledge into this comprehensive and intellectually delightful art.

This 336-page paperback, was written by Athena Swentzell Steen, Bill Steen and David Bainbridge, first published by Chelsea Green in Dec. of 94 and measuring 9.8 x 8 x 0.9, ships at 1.8 pounds.

For a relaxing and more comfortable home that is also pleasing to the eye, cheap, made from renewable materials, for a more self-reliant and sustainable world, The Straw Bale House written by the founders of the Canelo Project, is a book that makes sense for those looking to build a better tomorrow.

V2G, also known as plug-in hybrids really are an ideal option for commuter cars, due to recent improvements with rechargeable batteries, helping to actually stabilize the grid with home recharging during non-peak hours and solar panel recharging during peak hours with its excess energy supply being sent back to the grid when it most needs it.

Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle Video

Equipping the first Google fleet of gas/electric cars with data recording devices that come with technical read outs, charge history, environmental performance and patterns will make it possible to scientifically show the kind of results big car dealerships, not to mention consumers are lookingfor before actually investing.

A lot of people fear the use of electric vehicles because they think they will make our current situation even worse, but when businesses put up solar panels for recharging their fleet at work instead of fueling stations, the end result is actually extra energy keeping the grid stable as well as virtually eliminating CO2 emissions during the commuter week.

If every car in the US was currently a plug-in hybrid, charging in the garage at night, the usage would not endanger the grid at all, since those are sleeping hours.

But what about the hours while at work, during the day, you say? Solar panels located on the roof of an office building or parking lot roof can recharge the cars and fuel the grid simultaneously during even the highest peak hours; that is a sustainable solution that seriously offsets CO2.

The biggest reason for this offsetting is due to the fact that plug-in electric hybrids were developed to take on the commute to and from work, but for those long road trips, gasoline can still be used, while running the gasoline motor and braking, both regenerate the batteries as well.

If it takes only 2U$ to fill a battery for the commute to work, then at work, the battery is charged for free, while the buildings solar panels give-back to the grid, who will turn back to regular gasoline-only cars?

RechargeIT is a philanthropical initiative from Google.Org, to show the world what is possible with plug-in hybrid electric cars and vehicle to grid V2G solutions for commuting business people with one eye set on a more sustainable future, starting with what is possible today.

Already, they have chosen six finalists, for their project, and each project shows something special in the area of sustainability that makes them unique, while complying to their goals of 90% net zero energy use and maximizing the livability and health of residents.

WDSU - Global Green - Brad Pitt in New Orleans

From modular construction, cross ventilation, solar convection, natural overhangs, traditional local architectural designs, solar panels, resident gardens, green roof design, wetland and watershed management of waste water, community gardens, and even passive solar water heating, the collection of six finalists bring together their ideas into a union of knowledge in sustainability that on the average is FAR superior to any single project.

Brad Pitt notices one of the problems with skeptics who say that using green building techniques is too costly or that what these people need is housing now; Brad insists that sustainable designs are the way of the future, and our industry needs to learn to go Green now rather than later.

By using competition, Brad Pitt and Global Green USA have brought together some of the most wonderful sustainable ideas in the world, in an area that really does need to be constructed to last another century, but if they choose their designs well enough, these buildings could stand from 500 to 1000 years, the knowledge is certainly there and the professional architects certainly know what New Orleans needs really are.

Probably the most fascinating part of this news is watching NBC interview Brad Pitt and recognize on camera how much he really knows about green building and sustainability, he’s not just showing his image off, he really speaks honestly about what people in the area have known for years.

Low income housing is what they are trying to build, thus the concerns are focused on the problems those people face most; mainly energy consumption and health, and those are the issues the six finalist projects have answered in this philanthropic endeavor.

With mainly Brad Pitt and Global Green USA funding so far, they hope to reach millions of dollars to build a model city of tomorrow, today, for a people in deep need of environmental, social and human attention.

Related:
The Holy Cross Project

Initially, Google will need to hire experts that can help them produce one gigawatt of electrical power that is actually more cost-effective than the production of coal, then spend hundreds of millions of U$ in R&D and projects combined that in the end, make money.

Currently around 40% of the worlds energy is supplied through coal, creating a devastating and lasting effect on the planet; Googles hope, is that through their initiative RE<C more people will see that RE<C can be less expensive than coal is today.

Google will start their initiative by focusing on solar thermal power, wind power tech, enhanced geothermal systems and other possible breakthrough technologies, with cooperation from other organizations in the field, be they companies, labs or universities.

Makani Power Inc and eSolar are two companies Google already works with, while it maintains its ongoing commitments to a clean and green energy future through Google.org and the 2007 goal of carbon neutrality, which is on-track as of Nov. 27^th.

For 2008, the RE<C goal intends to do something that has never been done before, on a scale that seems like something out of a sci-fi novel, moving our tech forward to show that it is possible, right now, to show the world that what is lacking, is just a little initiative.

Hopefully, the new R&D team of renewable energy professionals hired for the RE<C Renewable Energy Cheaper than Coal goal will succeed and thus enlightening other states, other nations and eventually, the world, to a cleaner and greener tomorrow, that starts right here, right now, with one companies courage, to adventure in the good of all our planet.

Google Press:
Google’s Goal: Renewable Energy Cheaper than Coal
Google’s Current Vision:
Powering a clean energy revolution

Climate regulation, clean air, clean water and an improved quality of life; these qualities look to supplement already existing green building and landscaping guidelines, setting standards that even stand-alone landscaping projects can use.

As an interdisciplinary partnership, the American Society of Landscape Architects, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, the United States Botanic Garden and many stakeholder organizations are working together, to build not only an acceptable model for sustainable landscaping, but also a useable standard that governments and people can learn to follow more easily.

This is the kind of initiative that helps consumers in the world of growing green trends make the decisions that will not only improve their own lifestyle, but imminently our entire planet.

Mostly, because, subjects such as Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Urban Climate, Biodiversity, Waste Water, Water Pollution, Yard Waste, Public Health and Energy Consumption, just usually are not contemplated when putting together a landscaping project.

The average homeowner, especially the average green consumer, just readily excepts that by doing some landscaping, they are already making the necessary impact on their CO2 emissions, but just a dab of awareness into the subject of sustainable landscaping, can go a long way to getting even MORE green than before.

The landscape is an extension of a green building, so we really do have to ask ourselves about the area around the building as well, because, it is what will make an even bigger impact on the well being of our building users than when restricted to the building structure itself.

How sustainable are those new green condo homes up on the hill? If the answer is VERY, then the next question must be, how sustainable are the public garden and recreation areas between them?

Sustainable Sites is a project that looks to address issues with standards and guidelines, a rating system, pilot projects and a reference guide, with the intention to improve quality of life over the long-term as well as health of communities and the environment.

Hydrology, Soils, Vegetation, Materials and Human Well-being are the key factors to determining how sustainable a given site is going to be.

Water, soil and vegetation are key elements in tracing down ecological footprints that lead to CO2 emission calculations and depending on the non-replenishable resources being addressed, materials are also factored in withone of the common standards, such as cubic meters of soil used to build a house, or cubic meters of timber reaped from so many acres, the fuel to transport it…etc.

The more sustainable human factors of well being however are not yet set in stone and are still far more varied, depending deeply on statistics that have shown an increase in human recovery from illness or disease.

Statistical factors of human well-being include; wide and open green areas, spaces for physical activities, on-site food production and areas for social interaction.

Culture and art, such as folklore, theater, music and dance, all seem to have historical equivalents to prove themselves as at the very least useful in the process of well being and the statistics of social interaction, but as of yet, this is an extremely new project that will promote more results as more research and more researchers contribute to it, each in their own specialty.

Research into statistics will allow Sustainable Sites to create standards like those already used in green buildings and, in the long run, will become more and more case specific, as more and more people adhere to the principles behind these standards and guidelines of green spaces until the green space becomes an extension of the green building; not merely a household word, but a household way of life.

Challenging traditional thinking about what really is sustainable development and good economical growth, this book clashes with economic orthodoxy and new wave trends, focusing on how many people seem to get the wrong idea about catch phraseslike sustainable growth.

Author Herman E. Daly is a visionary professor at the University of Marylands School of Public Affairs and coauthor of For the Common Good, taking the subject of economics into focus as a way to better understand the planet we live on.

For people looking to delve into discussions about an ethical economy, sustainability, the environment and really in search of down to earth solutions, this book collects points of view that really work to make the future brighter.

This 264-page paperback by Beacon Press first released in august of 1997, measuring 9 x 6 x 0.7 and shipping at only 0.6 ounces.

International finance, environmentalism, catchwords that sell in unethical ways using trendysounds like sustainable, The Economics of Sustainable Development challenges orthodox thinking to provide necessary solutions through morals, community and a return to Mother Earth.

This is a starting point for those involved in the building industry and looking for a more responsible method of building. This is the practical how-to knowledge that makes sense to professionals.

Asking how you can affect your own work through understanding the philosophy of sustainable design is the key to what gives this book all its power, laying the ethical questions and groundwork for a more down to earth technical study later on.

Written by the President of Ecotone Publishing, author Jason F. McLennans 325-page hardcover was published in June of 2004, in both color and black and white photos, measuring 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.2 and shiping at a total of 1.4lbs.

As a founding member of Ecotone Publishing and CEO of Cascadia Green Building Council in Seattle, author Jason F. McLennan is a national leader in the movement for a greener architecture, a leading thinker of sustainability, providing information for the building industry and designing community in search of a path for a more sustainable future.

With abundant experience in the area of sustainable design, the author of The Philosophy of Sustainable Design Jason F. Mclennantaps into dozens of historical works by pioneers and green design philosophers to help you ultimately become the real future of architecture and design; beginning with a detailed code of what should and what should not be sustainable design.

When students start making their own models of advanced technologies like hydrogen cars that have only really been taken seriously for about a decade or so, it is obvious that our civilization is actually producing a scientific revolution to mark the field.

Scientific revolutions and shifting paradigms are some of the most fascinating moments for the philosophers of science, and Hydrogen is one of those areas that just sparks life into thinkers of that field on a regular basis.

This is true because generally speaking, neither common folk, scientists or even futurists in sustainability ever really thinkof hydrogen as an alternative fuel source for the long-term to be available within any reasonable amount of time.

Usually, hydrogen is considered one of those utopian ideas to save the world and change the face of the earth that have no place in the down-to-earthness we need right now.

Thus, it tends to fall to the back of our minds, but UWAFTs entrance with the Chevy Equinox (now with a completely remodeled drive-train) into the three-year Challenge X competition to ride across North America is defying the old paradigm in favor of a new one.

This new way of thinking, is a product of two important sponsors; The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and General Motors, two organizations that are fulfilling their promises to help save the earth and guarantee energy security at the same time.

While DOE is responsible for advancing the national, economic and energy security of the US, one of their strategic themes is Scientific Discovery and Innovation, or improving the quality of life through innovations in science and technology.

Each team has been on its own, none knowing anything of the others progress until the moments of revelation and choosing freely their objects of study, following those time proven industrial production models that our system uses everyday to make the best cars on the road.

The freedom to choose, the freedom to learn, independently, these schools have the best minds our nation can produce in the area; these are the conditions such great minds as Adam Smith and Descartes set down to council our Western world on how to truly manifest innovation! And it is in these childrens toys, that a revolution in how we see Hydrogen is coming about, faster than expected.

Innovations in science and technology are exactly what Challenge X is all about, promising to reveal some of the most elite technologies that could further the kingdom of automotive design, helping North America to Crossover to Sustainable Mobility by choosing 17 of the best engineering schools on the continent.

With the UWAFTs Chevy Equinox, Hydrogen Fuel Cells find their way ever closer to the top; opening minds and shattering materialistic paradigms of a no-nonsense past in automobile designs.

Taking on tomorrow with the best our nation has, for a more self-reliant and environmentally responsible future, starting today.

Related:
GM Environmental Commitment

What’s New:
Challenge X Media

Glossary of Terms:
Alternative Fuels Glossary

Related Category: Electric

• Chevrolet Volt
• Hybrid Hydrogen-Carbon Process H2CAR
• Tesla Electric Roadster
  ]]> http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/uwaft-alternative-fuels-team-and-the-challenge-x-competition/feed/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/sustainable-living/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/sustainable-living/#comments Mon, 27 Aug 2007 12:43:38 +0000 admin http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/sustainable-living/ Sustainable Living has 25 international examples of both high and low-tech homes across five different continents, through lavish photographs both in color and black and white, showing historical neighborhoods to rustic settings, with some of the most surprising materials from straw bales to sandbags, inspiring green design in every little detail of all the major styles and trends.

  Since 1992, living in a more comfortable way of life that is at ease with Nature and the environment, harvesting the best of civilization to promote both self-reliance and quality of life has become an incredibly fast-growing trend the world over; this book takes us through a detailed and colorful exploration of 25 of these pipe-dreams come true.

  This isnt just a do-it-yourself hippie dream from the 70s anymore, this is quickly becoming the major world tendency in some of the most remote areas of the world, to some of the oldest, even the most common construction worker is able to carry on conversations about sustainable living, while more and more people are finally getting the idea!

  The building industry is learning that this stuff can work and that this stuff has worked before, but it for the age of burning electrons, this requires intelligent technology, innovative construction, environmental approaches to energy supply, ecological building materials and a more sustainable architecture that adapts itself to individual taste in a more complete way.

  With the development of a growing sensitivity to quality of life, the techniques and innovation become evermore diverse and exotic in all the green-living areas, but especially that of residential housing; the focus of this colorful book.

  This 159-page hardcover was written by Dominique Gauzin-Müller, first published by Birkh^TM user Basel in June of 2006, with 25 examples of sustainable homes, 352 illustrations (221 in color), measuring 11.2 x 9.6 x 0.6 and shipping at 2.2 lbs.

  Sustainable Living shows rather than tells, and shows in details, part by part, all the major styles and techniques in use today by the trendy for a home that does good by Mother Earth, while maximizing all the creature comforts in a way that is specifically adapted to each owners personality with 25 international examples.

  ]]> http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/sustainable-living/feed/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/sustainable-planet/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/sustainable-planet/#comments Sun, 19 Aug 2007 00:44:14 +0000 admin http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/sustainable-planet/ Sustainable Planet is a product of the Center for a New American Dream (CNAD), and shows how we, as American citizens, can improve our quality of life by changing the way we consume, promoting social justice and protecting the environment for a more self-reliant tomorrow, starting right now in our own lives.

  Are Americans too fat? Do we work too hard? Are we too dependent on fashion and what the media decides should be an outfit for next summer? What about our cars? Our homes? Every single inch of our lifestyle is about consumption with repercussions on a global scale, and we consume more than any other civilization ever has on earth. Are we the Roman Empire, on the verge of collapse?

  We take so much from the earth through our current practices, and have done so for almost five generations now, it is finally coming into the spotlight; our practices are unsustainable and in the long-run, will no longer be possible, the time to better ourselves has finally come America! The trend today, is Sustainability!

  Juliet Schor and Besty Taylor show us sixteen different ways to make our lives better through more sustainable practices! Lower your carbon footprintslook like an athletic movie star, wear outfits that look like something from Brad Pitt in Fight Club or Julia Roberts in Oceans Eleven. We can do it, and we can do it from within our own nation; America!

  This book can be summed up as a guide as: Words of wisdom that reflect quality of life, for the twenty-first century.

  This is a road map for such things as the political willpower to change, how you can create a real sense of community where you live, five economic recommendations for a more sustainable economy, how to create a fashion industry that is socially just as well as aesthetically pleasing, how to rethink industrial design and engineering to be without waste, how to create local food systems that provide better tasting and fresher foods or protecting local family farms.

  This 304-page paperback written by Juliet Schor and Besty Taylor of CNAD, published by Beacon Press in January of 2003, measuring 8.7 x 5.9 x 0.7and shipping at 13.6 ounces indicates what we need to be doing as a nation to lead the world into sustainability, each and every one of us, right at home and in our own lives.

  SustainablePlanet: Solutions for the Twenty-First Century is about how we can better the quality of life for our America today; preparing for a more self-reliant and self-sufficient tomorrow.

  ]]> http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/sustainable-planet/feed/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/green-circles-by-chuck-hall/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/green-circles-by-chuck-hall/#comments Mon, 25 Jun 2007 17:43:33 +0000 admin http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/green-circles-by-chuck-hall/ Green Circles: A Sustainable Journey from the Cradle to the Grave by Chuck Hall is a way of observing every aspect and phase of the human lifecycle as an integral part of nature and the environment through a clear perspective of sustainable living.

  Green Circles is a 176 page paperback first published by Booklocker.com in May of 2007, measures 21.6 x 14x 1 cm, only weighs 232 grams and is a sound beginners manual on the elements of real green living.

  This book fulfills an empty slot on the market today, carefully examining every phase of human life from birth until death, even going so far as to include natural births, green burials and all the in-between.

  What does it really take to be the green-generation of the future? The sustainable-generation? These are the cues that Chuck Hall gets the chance to reflect upon inside this book, the kind of thing, everyone interested in sustainable living needs to know for a more productive future.

  Green Circles: A Sustainable Journey from the Cradle to the Grave, by Chuck Hall, metaphorically illustrates what it could mean to future generations if we begin to rely now on the children of today, through teaching and learning for a better, brighter, tomorrow

  More:
  About Chuck Hall - From Cultureartist.org

  ]]> http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/green-circles-by-chuck-hall/feed/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/greensulate-insulation-from-mushrooms/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/greensulate-insulation-from-mushrooms/#comments Mon, 25 Jun 2007 16:46:51 +0000 admin http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/greensulate-insulation-from-mushrooms/ Could mushroom spores replace conventional foam insulations?

  A renewable source of sustainable insulation from mushrooms that also acts as a firewall (and could even be grown into a whole house) was invented at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and is planned to be commercialized under the label Greensulate by Eben Bayer and Gavin McIntyre as soon as they are satisfied with their research and feel their technology is robust enough to meet demand.

  The insulation is created by pouring a mixture of insulating particles, hydrogen peroxide, starch, and water into a panel mold, Bayer says. Mushroom cells are then injected into the mold, where they digest the starch producing a tightly meshed network of insulating particles and mycelium. The end result is an organic composite board that has a competitive R-Value a measurement of resistance to heat flow and can serve as a firewall.

  While still young, Eben Bayers mushroom insulation invention shows promise as one fifth of the energy used in America today comes from poorly insulated homes and the conventional foam insulation we use are neither from a renewable source of energy, nor biodegradable.

  For a country that is setting the tide for a worldwide green living revolution, Bayers invention is perfect timing.

  Beyond insulation applications, the duo envision modifying the growing mixture slightly to include reinforcing materials that could be used to create strong, sustainable growable homes. Examples of this application include inexpensive structural panels that could be grown and assembled on-site in developing nations where usable housing is scarce and generally hard to obtain, or in disaster areas where temporary housing is essential.

  Sustainable insulation from mushrooms, an environmentally clean firewall technology and perhaps even a more sustainable home that is thermodynamically more efficient than traditional non-biodegradable insulated ones have been; perhaps the time has come to think Greensulate?

  Press Release:
  Commencement 2007: Graduate Develops “Growable” Solution to Energy Issues

  Media:
  Organic insulation could replace traditional
  foam insulation - Lemelson-Rensselaer Student Prize: Eben Bayer Finalist (adobe pdf file)

  News:
  Science Daily - Article on Mushroom Insulation

  ]]> http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/greensulate-insulation-from-mushrooms/feed/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/climate-savers-initiative-2007/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/climate-savers-initiative-2007/#comments Fri, 15 Jun 2007 15:12:44 +0000 admin http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/climate-savers-initiative-2007/ The Climate Savers Computing Initiative was announced on the 12^th of June, 2007 by more than thirty different high-tech companies such as Intel and Google in order to drive energy-efficient computing; saving 5.5 billion U$ in energy costs and reduce CO2 emissions by 54 million tons per year.

  Everybody knows that since 1998, Google has come from a mere project at Standord to a world leader as a search engine software that has a commitment to knowledge distribution; Intel is a world leader in silicon innovation, developing new hardware that continually advances how people work and live.

  An assortment of famous companies, have also given this same pledge; and reaching this goal by 2010 is most likely going to happen because the world is concerned with glaciers melting faster and faster and our computers are worsening the problem with inefficient energy consumption, even in down-time.

  Climate Savers Computing Initiative is just one more way we can become focused about greenhouse gasses. Currently, we need to make better use of our computers, they need to use energy more efficiently, and we need to make sure that we are keeping them properly when not in use.

  Learning to be one of the next climate savers through the computing initiative of tomorrow, is to work towards a clean and self-reliant utopia for the children of our children today.

  Google Press - On Climate Saver Initiative

  ]]> http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/climate-savers-initiative-2007/feed/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/the-uk-goes-zeh-efficient/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/the-uk-goes-zeh-efficient/#comments Wed, 13 Jun 2007 14:28:02 +0000 admin http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/the-uk-goes-zeh-efficient/ The UK is ordering new sustainability standards on their modern built ZEH homes for the year 2016, and a showcase was released on the 13^th of June, 2007, Kingspan OffSite, featuring six lighthouse-class homes that have no carbon footprint whatsoever.

  Two bedrooms, sixty percent more insulation, southern facing windows, 93,3 square meters, two and half story with all building materials and components specified to meet gold standards of sustainability.

  Rainwater efficiency, renewable energy sources, passive heating, cooling and ventilation and even a biodigester, this is as off-the-grid as building codes are going to get until 2016.

  The time to go green has come for the UK, and in nine years, every contractor in the world will need to know how to make use of these technologies, vacuum tight insulation is from now a legal part of UK ZEH efficiency.

  Related:
  What is a Zero Energy Home?
  Offsite2007.com
  BBC News - Kingspan Article with Images and Video

  ]]> http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/the-uk-goes-zeh-efficient/feed/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/coca-cola-pledges-to-replace-the-water-it-uses/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/coca-cola-pledges-to-replace-the-water-it-uses/#comments Wed, 06 Jun 2007 01:13:56 +0000 admin http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/coca-cola-pledges-to-replace-the-water-it-uses/ On the 5^th of June, 2007 at the World Water Foundation (WWF) convention in Beijing, Coca-Cola officially pledges to replace the water it uses.

  Three factors; REDUCE, RECYCLE and REPLENISH:

  1. Reducing the water used to produce its beverages
  2. Recycling water used for beverage manufacturing processes
  3. Replenishing water in communities and nature.

  Launching a multi-year partnership with the WWF to conserve and protect freshwater sources, including seven of the worlds most important river water basins.

  “Our goal is to replace every drop of water we use in our beverages and their production. For us that means reducing the amount of water used to produce our beverages, recycling water used for manufacturing processes so it can be returned safely to the environment, and replenishing water in communities and nature through locally relevant projects.”
  - E. Neville Isdell, Chairman and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company.

  Acting locally and thinking globally, Coca-Cola is really leading the way for innovation in renewable and sustainable business strategies around the world.

  Through water stewardship, Coca-Cola is looking to eventually eliminate every last ecological footprint they have ever cast in the world; either directly or indirectly, this is their pledge, and by 2008 they wish to have every single Coke affiliate in the world actively fighting the environmental battle on all fronts.

  The Coca-Cola Company’s environmental protection efforts include:

  1. Global water stewardship
  2. Package design, recovery and reuse
  3. Energy and climate protection - address the areas that are most important to its business and are where the Company can make the greatest impact.

  By setting goals and targets to reach eventual global sustainability in water use by 2010, Coca-Cola is taking the slow and steady path to long-term success that will create a positive impact on every country they touch.

  The Coca-Cola has already been leading the way with WWF for years, now, their influence is growing, such as with FEMSA and their partnership with SOS Mata Atlântica in Brazil to replenish three million hectares of Atlantic Rainforest.

  The biggest breakthrough in this battle to zero their ecological footprints occurs in their giving back to the earth through programs that center around community awareness, productive water use, sanitation, hygiene, water supply and watershed management.

  If their focus on the most important river water basins in the world, including:

  • The Yangtze (China)
  • Mekong (S.E. Asia)
  • Rio Grande/Rio Bravo (US and México)
  • Rivers and Basins of the US (Southeast)
  • The Mesoamerican Caribbean Reef
  • The East Africa basin of Lake Malawi
  • Europe’s Danube Rive.

  Taking back these main rivers at their core, is the only the beginning, but it is a moment of truth for the world! The first moment of truth in 2,500 years when our civilization first learned to sacrifice rivers for Greek and Roman convenience!

  From the looks of things, it would appear that Coca-Colas pledge to replace the water it uses and the ongoing commitment to the biosphere are genuine, and if achieved, will change the world we live in for the better, teaching us to correct our habits in accordance to the Earths already perfect water cycle.

  Coke Press Release

  ]]> http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/coca-cola-pledges-to-replace-the-water-it-uses/feed/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/balance-point-homestead/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/balance-point-homestead/#comments Sat, 24 Mar 2007 04:08:24 +0000 admin http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/balance-point-homestead/ Balance Point Homestead is a passive solar energy off grid home in the Mohawk Valley, upstate New York.

  David and Sarah’s self sufficient passive solar home is totally off the grid, is not a part of the buy back program and was never intended to be.

  It was always meant to be an example of how renewable energies are readily accessible to everyone, to even the most average people.

  This passive-active solar home was built in 2002 to prove that passive works in the North East United States, where most people tend to think it is just far too cold and without enough sun.

  The house uses eight photovoltaic solar panel arrays that together, generate almost 1 full kW of electricity, plus a single aeolic generator that also provides 1kW.

  That is the electricity, but what really makes Balance Point Homestead a work of art, is the unique passive design that collects thermal solar energy and redistributes itself in a more sustainable way.

  The first technique was the use of southern facing windows with heavy insulation that has been meticulously sealed to impede seeping heat; a big factor in passive homes.

  Once again, this was done by the home owners themselves, inspecting the contractors work with detail at every stage of insulation, as they were average contractors and were not experts in the building of a solar passive home such as Balance Point Homestead.

  Secondly, the solar hot water heating panels provide all the domestic hot water in the summer months and most of it during winter months.

  Both the wood stove and hot water (gas) heater can use propane as an emergency heat source, but with additional renovation, the house will no longer need propane to heat the water in winter, as the dump load from the aeolic generator will be used to heat water electrically.

  This is a creative use of the aeolic generators dump load (excess electrical energy), as most homes usually would use it to provide the grid with added electricity or simply would not have any use for it.

  Balance Point Homestead is a fine example of how efficient and sustainable, passive solar homes can be in the North East United States, even completely off grid.

  Balance Point Homestead is an example for everyone, that even youcan do this, no matter who you are; simply having the passion for a better, more sustainable tomorrow, and the willingness to go after your dreams are enough to create your own passive solar homestead off grid in New England

  Video: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8439811714819849636&q=solar

  ]]> http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/balance-point-homestead/feed/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/hybrid-hydrogen-carbon-process-h2car/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/hybrid-hydrogen-carbon-process-h2car/#comments Wed, 21 Mar 2007 22:50:09 +0000 admin http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/hybrid-hydrogen-carbon-process-h2car/ H2CAR or Hybrid Hydrogen-Carbonis a proposed process for a more sustainable biofuel that virtually eliminates CO2 emissions in biodiesel, multiplying biomass efficiency to a point where our nations current demand for oil would be completely met and eliminating the need to sequester the current overdose of CO2 in our atmosphere.

  H2CAR is a new way to produce liquid biodiesel (fuel) from biomass with the addition of hydrogen; making that normal amount of biomass go three times farther than it normally would when chemically gasifying conventionally (without hydrogen).

  Hybrid Hydrogen-Carbon Process basically blends two sustainable methods of fuel production for combustion (diesel) engines that free us from the uncontrolled and unregulated discharge of CO2 into the atmosphere, as has been the case with our planets overuse of fossil fuels for decades.

  The logic behind this new sustainable biodiesel H2CAR relies on a more practical way of procuring and releasing the stored energy.

  The solar-power electrolysis method for producing hydrogen uses 10 times less sunlight than biomass like soy or corn do; while at present the hydrogen in biomass is all that is being used in biofuel production.

  Carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and hydrogen are the three gases biodiesel contains; injecting hydrogen would maximize its potential as a sustainable resource.

  Biomass is used as a carbon, while hydrogen is extracted through carbon-free methods (like solar-hydrogen-electrolysis).

  They are chemically gasified, chemically liquefied and when burned in the combustion chamber of a train, plane or automobile, a far wider range of carbons are spent than is traditionally so with conventional biodiesel designs (which have a 60 70% carbon inefficiency rate).

  H2CAR uses hydrogen to suppress the formation of CO2 in liquid hydrocarbon fuel; converting all the carbon atoms available into useable fuel.

  Biodiesel comes from biomass that has captured CO2 through normal photosynthesis, which is then released back into the atmosphere when expended, thereby virtually closing the CO2 circuit and becoming in this way a cleansource of energy fuel that can be used to power our cars.

  The traditional biodiesel cycle is labeled zero-emissions, even though biodiesel does emit CO2, as the whole process is self-containing.

  Hydrogen can be extracted through electrolysis which uses an electrical current to divide the oxygen and hydrogen molecules in water; usually photovoltaics are used to create the electricity for this.

  This is labeled as a carbon-free hydrogen extraction system.

  The stored hydrogen is also used as an explosive gas for powering our car engines with hydrogen fuel cells, much like biofuel, but producing distilled H2O instead of CO2 and is also considered clean, as it neither consumes, nor produces CO2.

  As the oxygen expended in electrolysis is recaptured during hydrogen expenditure, Hydrogen fuel cells do not contribute to the formation of O3 (the ozone layer). This cycle is therefore also labeled zero-emissions.

  With all the biomass in production in the US today that is set aside specifically for biofuels (1.4 billion tons), only one third (30%) of our nations fuel consumption can be met at present, Purdue Universitys researchers (abstract) however feel their new liquid hydrocaron fuel design will triple that percentage (to 90%) leaving only a small margin of 10% that could be filled with waste biomass not yet extensively cultivated.

  While biomass production would consume CO2 (releasing O2 into the atmosphere) and solar-power electrolysis would release oxygen, there would be enough oxygen in the atmosphere for the regeneration of the Ozone (O3).

  H2CAR eradicates the ongoing threat our unnatural release of CO2 from fuel (especially fossil) currently poses, eliminating the need to control the overabundance of CO2 in our atmosphere through sequestration.

  The sequestering of CO2 would not be sustainable by any means due to the energy spent over the long-term in maintaining the gas under-stopper and monitored, below ground.

  H2CAR is definitely a noticeable alternative to either hydrogen or electric cars because of the energy savings in the long-term, potential repair of the Ozone and as a self-reliant biofuel for our nation, right now.

  H2CAR simply means the hydrogen extracted through solar-power electrolysis is blended with biomass (carbon) also in a gaseous state, then liquefied, producing a liquid hydrocarbon fuel (a super-biofuel:-) otherwise known as the Hybrid Hydrogen-Carbon Process.

  Related:
  Liquid Hydrocarbon Fuel

  ]]> http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/hybrid-hydrogen-carbon-process-h2car/feed/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/school-garden-in-santa-maria-is-supported-by-osh/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/school-garden-in-santa-maria-is-supported-by-osh/#comments Sun, 18 Feb 2007 02:47:19 +0000 admin http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/school-garden-in-santa-maria-is-supported-by-osh/ Orchard Supply Hardware based in San José California is supporting the efforts of Miller School in Santa Maria, with over 1,000 U$ in gardening supplies and cooperation to build a state-of-the-art school garden.

  Volunteers, teachers andelementary students working together in the garden is traditionally what school gardens have always been about and Miller School is doing something that goes beyond just the community; this style of teaching is inevitably one of the surest ways to guarantee a more sustainable future for our nation.

  School gardens help kids get close to nature in a very up close and personal way, and because gardens can be so metaphorical, teachers can get a lot more out of them than just how we are all interconnected through the web of life, however, that is the biggest point.

  School gardens can teach our younglings to respect nature and enjoy it, can help second language children build associations with their surroundings, and even lead into artistic activities like a paintings by Van Gogh and mostly, sustainability is the future; that means teaching our children about what is going to happen in their adult lives.

  Systems Theorists agree that this interconnectivity that we all share in this biosphere is at the very least a sensitive thing, and through our actions, we determine outcomes that effect all life on earth.

  Politically, socially and economically; our world will be controlled by children, and the earlier we instruct them in solutions to the future problems that will effect our existence, the better chances we will have of preserving our way of life.

  School gardens give so much to a child and this communion is symbolic to sustainability in that it can teach more about how we are a part of the planet than any global-studies eighth grader class can.

  Thank you Miller School, OSH and other schools, businesses and governments that are taking eco-living into school gardens, thereby bringing connectivity to the next generation.

  Related:
  santamariatimes.com

  ]]> http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/school-garden-in-santa-maria-is-supported-by-osh/feed/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/bio-bubbles/ http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/bio-bubbles/#comments Sat, 03 Feb 2007 19:13:33 +0000 admin http://sustainable.rain-barrel.net/bio-bubbles/ Excel-Aire makes Bio-Bubble; a 100% degradable bubble packaging that turns to water, CO2 and harmless biomass through the d2w (degrades to water) oxo-biodegradable additive process.

  Bio-Bubble is oxo-biodegradable, has been comprehensively tested, is environmentally safe with no compromise to product features or performance and is completely recyclable either as a plastic or an organic.

  Excel-Aire knows that 90% of all plastics ever made are still out there somewhere, be they in landfills, rivers, lakes, in use or not, they will take up to 200 years to return to the earth in landfills alone in some cases and we throw so much non-biodegradable plastic away by the hour!

  Excel-Aire is dedicated to making a commitment for a brighter and more sustainable future, one that is worthy of our children’s children, without compromising the quality plastics we use from day to day.

  Oxo-biodegradable plastics are the conventional polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene with an added proprietary mixture that accelerates the breakdown of chemical structures in the plastics themselves.

  The remaining product is amenable to conversion by microorganisms, offering a source of food, in turn the microorganisms change these conventional plastics into carbon dioxide and water, both easily consumed by the ecosystem.

  Oxygen in the air forms different molecules that are many times smaller than the original plastic and molecules (forming water beads around the original plastic).

  This is a natural process for any plastic, but with the oxo-biodegradable additives (such as d2w), this process is many times accelerated, catalyzing this reaction in a fraction of the time it would take without the additives.

  Bio-Bubbles are just as good as conventional bubble plastics in practice, but once thrown away have proven in field tests that the oxidative degradation caused by the additives make the molecular chains shorter and wettable, allowing the ecosystem to clean up within weeks instead of aeons.

  Bio-Bubbles have been engineered to begin their breakdown after one year, giving any products at least that, in shelf life.

  Contact with sun or water is a sure way to begin the process as d2w (the oxo-biodegradable additive used in Bio-Bubbles) is fully programmable.

  Anti-oxidants are used to make sure that oxo-biodegradable plastics can withstand the processing conditions and are slowly consumed over time usually between one to two years depending on the product and its uses of course.

  The oxo-biodegradable additive used in Bio-Bubbles is d2w, which can control the speed and onset of degeneration.

  The more heat, water and stress on the product itself the more it will speed the breakdown process; less of these things will slow the process down.

  The active ingredient in d2w is a transition metal salt (very low levels) and is not toxic to sensitive plants or animals; perfectly safe for food packaging.

  Bio-Bubbles are recyclable, composted as organic material (NOT PLASTICS), but if allowed into a post consumer recycling stream for plastics, the degradation