Water

I recently had the opportunity to view the construction of a sustainable house being built in my neighborhood in Newton, Massachusetts.  The home was designed by LDa Architecture and Interiors, based out of Cambridge, MA.  

A comprehensive study released on July 18, 2011 by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) outlines guidelines to help you, the consumer, make wiser food choices. We have long known that certain foods create an abundance of CO2 emissions. What this study adds is understanding the roll of the entire life cycle of various foods, whereas previous research mostly focuses on food production. The EWG research tracks food production, processing, consumption and waste disposal to teach us how to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions and pollutions that result from our dietary habits.

“By eating and wasting less meat, consumers can help limit the environmental damage caused by the huge amounts of fertilizer, fuel, water, and pesticides, not to mention the toxic manure and wastewater, that goes along with producing meat,” said Kari Hamerschlag, EWG senior analyst and author of the report. “Choosing healthier, pasture-raised meats can also help improve people’s health and reduce the environmental damage associated with meat consumption.”

Five Worst Foods For the Environment:

1. Lamb, especially loin

2. Beef – choose grass-fed and lean meats to reduce your impact on the environment

3. Cheese (this one shocked me! Total bummer!) - Less dense cheese (such as cottage) results in fewer greenhouse gases since it takes less milk to produce it... read more

Since World Oceans Day is coming up on June 8th, Tristin and Tyler take a trip to visit some friends who live in the water in this episode of Tristin and Tyler's Tales from the City! Caring for the ocean and all of the creatures that call the ocean home is super important.  With the Pacific Garbage Patch growing and growing, it's so important to teach kids about our friends who call the ocean home.

Tristin and Tyler Enjoying The Ducks!... read more

Installing solar panels seems like a great idea, but finding that spare $30k can be rough. Solar Thermal Water Heaters are a great alternative to installing a full photovoltaic solar panel system.

These water heaters will help greatly reduce your energy use. They are much smaller than a PV system, making them much cheaper. Also, converting the sun's energy into heat is much simpler than turning it into electricity. To have a solar thermal water heater installed, you will likely spend about $.... read more

Today is World Water Day -- a day each year when the world's water activist community holds events and discussions about the state of the world's water.  This year's theme was Water for Cities.  I had the opportunity to attend a symposium held at George Washington University on this topic.  While the presenters ranged from everything from new innovations in water supply to the urban poor to managing stormwater in DC, the underlying theme was conservation.  How can we supply people in the world without water while managing and conserving our own use of water?

What I found to be the most interesting part of this symposium was the presentation by George Hawkins, General Manager for DC Water (the DC water utility company).  He began his talk by pointing out that 1) water is something that everyone needs, 2) we don't know what to do when the water is turned off, and 3) that most people have no concept of where their water comes from and where it goes once they use it. 

... read more