Goal For The Green

Chris, is one of my very best friends.  She lives in Rockledge, Florida.  Imagine my surprise when I received these pics in my inbox.  Here is what she had to say.

I took these pictures this morning they were right across the street from our home. These are my favorite birds. They are Sandhill Cranes, and they are So-o-o-o cool.  They walk around like they own the place, can you tell?  They are So-o-o-o loud – they remind you of the noise a teradactyl would make,  like the ones in the movie Ice Age.  Share and enjoy! 🙂

So, how’s that for a little nature strolling through for your front yard viewing?  Gotta, love it!

Nature at it’s finest!

Guest Post
by Johnathan Rivers

Tired of not knowing what your energy bill is going to be each month? Retail energy providers in Texas, and other states nationwide offer a sort of flat rate monthly energy plan. Your bill is calculated based on your average energy usage, and what you pay is more or less the same each month. This enables you to budget better and more accurately gauge your energy usage so you can focus even more on living green.

If you don’t live in a state that has flat-rate energy costs, you can still take steps to make your monthly energy bill more predictable while striving to reduce your consumption. Start with your climate control unit and your washing appliances.

1) Change the thermostat when the seasons change

Lux Products' Model TX900TS Touch Screen Thermostat. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The first thing most people do when Summertime rolls around is crank down their thermostat, when in fact, they should be doing the opposite. Instead of setting the thermostat to 65 in the Summer time – a temperature that your home may not even reach in 90 degree weather unless it’s extremely well insulated. Instead – set it to 74-78.
The difference in temperature between your home and outside should be the focus. A 74 degree home in 90 degree weather feels relatively similar to a 65 degree home in 80 degree weather. In other words, your body reacts differently to a room’s temperature depending on how relatively warm it is outside.

For colder seasons, take the same approach but from the opposite end of the spectrum. Instead of setting the thermostat to 78, set it at 68 and wear a pair of long pajamas or a hoodie inside if you’re more on the cold-natured side.
Allowing your thermostat to work at a similar level throughout the year, and thus consume roughly the same amount of energy, is an easy to way to make your energy bill more predictable.

2) Develop a schedule for washing clothes and running the dishwasher
Not only do your washing machine and dishwasher use electricity to run, they also pull from your hot water heater, which can further affect your electricity or gas costs.

For most people, running these energy-intensive appliances is sporadic. They use them when they need to do so.  But, when you consider that no other devices in your home – besides your air conditioner and perhaps your refrigerator – use more energy than your washing appliances, it’s worth looking at developing a schedule for washing clothes and dishes to help make your monthly bill more predictable.

A dishwasher containing clean dishes (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Instead of using your dishwasher after every dinner, consider rinsing dishes off and waiting until it gets full before operating it. Create a protocol for when you wash – for example, commit to running the dishwasher every Sunday night and Wednesday night. Do the same for washing laundry. Designate two nights a week (or less if you’re single or don’t have kids) to wash laundry. If you have the same number of wash cycles each month for your big appliances, you use roughly the same amount of energy. The outcome is, you’re rewarded with a more consistent and predictable power bill each month.

Do you want more consistent energy bills, so you can better plan your budget? Start with making these adjustments and being consistent when it comes to your home’s most energy intensive appliances. It’s easy, and you can start today.

Photo “Atlanta Showroom” at Interface

According to Interface, Inc.  There Are Five Questions Businesses Must Answer in order to Advance Toward Sustainability. Latest Sustainability Metrics Beg Questions to Narrow Environmental Impacts Gap

Established in 1973, Interface, Inc. (NASDAQ: IFSIA) is the worldwide leader in design, production and sales of environmentally responsible modular carpet, manufactured for the commercial and institutional markets under the Interface(R) brand, and for consumer markets as FLOR(TM).

In a recent PRESS RELEASE in Atlanta, Georgia- by Marketwire, on August2,2012:

Interface, Inc. (NASDAQ: IFSIA), the worldwide leader in design, production and sales of environmentally responsible modular carpet, has linked sustainability progress to inquiry since 1994.  At that time, a customer asked a question about the company’s position on the environment and Interface was not satisfied with its own answer.  Now, with the release of the company’s latest 2011 EcoMetrics(R) and SocioMetrics(TM) report, tracking annual global environmental and social effects, Interface today offers five questions in need of answers for sustainability progress.

“Disciplined measurement is one way Interface accounts for what it takes from the earth, and helps us to ultimately take less from the earth,” said Erin Meezan, vice president of sustainability for Interface, Inc. “And some of the questions that we’re asking as a result are not unique to Interface. Without a doubt, finding answers has universal meaning that can ultimately lead to a better future for the environment and for business.”

Since the initial environmental question was posed more than 18 years ago, Interface continues to move away from a take-make-waste industrial model, toward a sustainable business inspired by nature. The company considers indicators such as its physical waste, energy usage, greenhouse gas emissions and water consumption crucial to understanding its progress toward sustainability and the challenges ahead.

Interface’s journey is guided by research and development in manufacturing processes and product innovation. Sustainability is linked to local, regional and global communities, including the companies, organizations, people, governments, schools, media and others that coexist. Interface also considers the significance of social capital and investment in people, including the company’s employees and local community members, as critical components for advancement.

Interface believes that answers to the following five questions can test any business’ approach to becoming a sustainable organization:

1. How can we increase use of recycled and bio-based materials? Evaluating material alternatives through compatibility and footprint analysis is one of the best ways to help answer this question. Interface is pioneering commercial carpet applications for bio-based yarn that is created from corn and soy. Last year, 44 percent of raw materials used were from recycled or bio-based sources. In the past eight years, the percentage of recycled and bio-based raw material use has grown from four percent to 44 percent.

2. How can we prevent our products from ending up in landfill? Understanding the full lifecycle of products from raw materials to production, distribution, use and end of useful life shows a well-worn path. Consider the best way to take back products from customers and extract further value from them. For instance, Interface’s ReEntry(R) 2.0 process reclaims old carpet and converts it into recycled raw materials. Interface is expanding an infrastructure for end-of-life carpet reclamation to recapture used face fiber to be reconstituted into nylon and convert used vinyl backing into new backing. Last year, ReEntry diverted 25 million pounds of carpet and carpet scraps from landfill. Since 1995, ReEntry has diverted a cumulative total of 253 million pounds from landfill.

3. How can we reduce greenhouse gas emissions and at the same time increase our use of renewable energies? Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere that cannot be absorbed by vegetation are causes of increased global temperatures, acidification in oceans, and dangerous climate change, according to WWF’s 2012 “Living Planet Report.” For Interface, actual greenhouse gas emissions at manufacturing facilities have been reduced by 32 percent from a 1996 baseline. Interface’s energy efficiency and direct purchases of renewable energy have resulted in a cumulative reduction of more than 22,000 metric tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions from baseline. This amount is the equivalent to the carbon sequestered by approximately 565,000 tree seedlings grown for 10 years, according to the U.S. EPA’s “Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator.” Energy from renewable sources accounts for 31 percent of energy used at Interface manufacturing facilities.

4. How can we reduce water consumption? Excessive water consumption by businesses and households threatens freshwater ecosystems and biodiversity globally. Finding ways to conserve water use in manufacturing processes is essential for lessening environmental impacts. Since 1996, Interface water intake per unit of production has decreased by 84 percent. Water intake includes all water used at manufacturing facilities, including administration buildings, customer support sites and warehouses.

5. How can customers make decisions about our products based upon trustworthy environmental facts? Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) are a leading-edge methodology for consumers and businesses, like nutrition labels only much more detailed, to make comparisons when purchasing products. EPDs offer detailed product “ingredients” and environmental impacts that occur throughout the entire life of a product. EPDs are based on life cycle assessment, which details the resource use and environmental impacts of products. EPDs follow standardized product category guidelines that are verified by third parties to provide full disclosure. In 2011, Interface developed EPDs for more than 90 percent of its products, globally.

Individuals, businesses and organizations can learn more about Interface and how the company is tracking its environmental impacts and progress by visiting interfaceglobal.com