Save Money, Save The Environment

How about installing a small program, that can help you better manage your computers power?

According to LocalCooling.com

More than 30 billion kilowatt-hours of energy is wasted because many of us simply forget to shut down our computers when we’re not using them. If we could just improve the efficiency of how we use our PCs, the savings in energy costs would be over $3 billion dollars! The CO2 emissions from just 15 computers are equivalent in energy terms to the gas consumption used by one car.

This has the benefit of saving you money while also saving the environment, so get over there and download it!

Green Roof

I while ago I wrote about green roofs in 'Time to mow the roof', well, totally by chance I stumbled upon this UK company that will supply a sedum planted roof for your garden buildings. They build and supply a whole range of garden buildings, sheds and wooden garages, and will make them with this sedum roof to order, they can also retro fit an existing building if it is suitable.



Sedum is a small succulent plant that can grow in many inhospitable or inaccesable places such as rock faces, ledges or walls and seems to be ideal for this type of application.

Such a roof has many environmental benefits including putting back some of which was removed by installing the building in the first place, removing CO2 from the atmosphere, helping to support local wildlife, as well as providing additional insulation for the building itself.

It's always good to find a company, that goes above and beyond what a similar company may offer, and Taylors Garden Buildings (www.taylorsgardenbuildings.co.uk) is one that certainly appears to do so.

Shedding Some Light!

It had never really occurred to me that the words 'environmentally friendly' could be applied to so many aspects of artificial lighting until I was asked to take a look at the products supplied by a company called Starry Night Lights (http://www.starrynightlights.com/). They specialise in products that reduce light pollution, and are also environmentally friendly.

Now if you are a budding astronomer, then you'll be very familiar with the effects of light pollution on the night sky ... If you're not then, basically it blocks the view of all but the brightest stars, and the nearer you are to a town or city, the worse it gets, until the night sky becomes just a void.

But light pollution is more than occluding our view of the heavens. Bad artificial lighting can cause glare, it can blind passing vehicles and is not only annoying, but down right dangerous, it can interfere with the natural cycles of wildlife, and it has even been proven to be a cancer risk.

Starry Night Lights provide a thoughtfully designed lighting range covering interior and exterior applications which aim to address these issues.

For example they have a range of street lighting that uses LPS (low pressure sodium) bulbs, which less electricity than the high pressure. Using less energy and efficient direction, means that far less electricity is consumed, cutting down the emissions from power stations which pollute the air we breath, as well as conserving our precious earthly resources. It doesn't end there though, the housing has been designed to only direct light where it is required, this stops glare, and eliminates light pollution.

From what I have seen, Starry Night Lights have a product range that can fulfill practically all requirements, from domestic to commercial, inside and out, as well as things like low energy bulbs, and motion detectors - that will only turn lights on only when needed.

So for anyone with an interest in the environment (which should be all of us), and green building techniques, should also become aware of the benefit we can have on our surroundings by just selecting the right type of light fitting for the right application, and to use only what is necessary to accomplish what's needed.

This was a sponsored review, but if you (like I myself have) learned anything from this article, and actually apply it to your next lighting project, then for everyones sake, it was truly worth it!

Slow Down & Green Up

It's now the UK's 3rd National Downshifting Week!

The basic principle of downsizing and sustainable living is this; If you slow down, or downshift your way of life, then you'll automatically be improving the quality of your life, reduce stress, and also benefit the environment.

There's far more to it than my simplistic description, but it is explained far better in this free ebook (PDF) that you can download here (right click and select 'save target as' or similar).

The creator of the scheme was Tracey Smith, and the website can be found at: www.DownshiftingWeek.com if you'd like to know more, or take part.

There are lots of ideas on the site to help you and your family, your school, or even your company get the most from this week, so get on over there, take part, and support it!

The UK Hemp Expo

Well if you know anything about hemp, then you know of its incredible properties, and mutltitude of uses. This is one of the most sustainable crops available, and if laws were relaxed a little could do so much more to help with current environmental issues. Anyway, the biggest UK exhibition is almost upon us:

5th, 6th and 7th of May 2007, at the Telford International Centre.

The UK's biggest and best hemp and accessories exhibition.

Featuring the latest and greatest in new inventions, clothing, bags, food, books, alternative therapies, healing, music, famous names and famous faces, seminars, new seed strains, vaporisers and much, much more.

Exhibitors, inventors, wholesalers and retailers will be coming from all over the world to show the best in hemp and accessories. Everything you could ever need to will be under one roof, including top advice from some of this planets experts.

Tickets are only £5.00 each and can be pre-booked from the website (click on the banner below).

Creative self sufficiency (part 1 - introduction)

Being environmentally conscious, and/or self sufficient is not just about installing solar panels to your roof (although admirable), for those that are serious it also means you can get to try many creative activities too!

It gives you the opportunity of reconditioning items, turning old things into new and prolonging its life, or producing healthier alternatives than bought ones.

Such activities can include weaving, wine/beer or bread making. Making your own jewellery or candles, or even restoring old toys and furniture. There are countless hobbies, pastimes or projects that you can turn your hand to if you look around and put a little thought into it.

The benefits to you, your family, and the environment definitely worthwhile. Producing any of your own food, or wines for example means that you know exactly what you are eating or drinking. From a health perspective this is priceless.

Mass produced foodstuffs including simple things such as bread, not only contain hidden ingredients such as preservatives and other chemicals, they're also less nutritious than what you are able to make for yourself.

You can start small at first such as a simple pot of herbs growing on your kitchen window sill, and progress to having a whole section of your garden dedicated to growing your own fruit and vegetables. The flavours of home grown food can also taste so much better than those bought from your local supermarket.

Once you have grown it .. learn to cook with it (if you can't already!). Remember, start small, start simple, and build up slowly. There is no rush, just take everything one small step at a time and everything will eventually fall into place. Taking on too much in one go is one of the main reasons many people giveup or fail. They are overwhelmed. Yes it will require effort, but the rewards for your effort are so much greater all round.

You can turn old 'rubbish' into something new, restore it which will not only save you money, but also prevent you having to throw it out, adding to the increasing landfill. As well as the environmental benefits, you will become more creative and self sufficient in the process! This is the most creative form of recycling that you can partake in.

Doing any of these activities will give you a real sense of achievment - the satisfaction of producing or creating something for yourself. It will provide you with an interest, a hobby to persue, as well as the opportunity to share ideas with others or just show off your latest project!

This isn't a dated 'hippy' outlook, but a way of living that will help you to survive in this fast paced, modern age of waste, mass production, and disposable everything.

The next three or so articles will show you a few projects I have personally completed lately, including some how to's and photographs. This will hopefully give you some inspiration or ideas that you could try to help yourself and/or the environment.

These include making a 'new' necklace and bracelet from a broken wood bead necklace, breadmaking using a breadmaking machine (keeping it simple see!), to restoring an old footstall.

Polysilicon in short supply

Photovoltaic cells (for soalr panels) are made from a substance called polysilicon. This substance is actually in short supply at the moment which could lead to inferior solar panels using an alternative silicon compound.

More here ...

What's wrong with this picture.

If you have flash installed then take a look at this website, now I understand the sentiment, but using something that does possibly
3 miles to the gallon to promote it!

Does this seem strange to you, or is it just me? That is probably one of the most environmentally 'un-friendly' vehicles I know of, and in their own words to: 'raise awareness of environmental issues'! Can you say the word 'irony' Honda?

Nuclear Plans Ruled Unlawful

The UK Government recently announced their support for continued nuclear development as the way forward for 'greener' energy, including the building of more power stations. This was after 'consultation' (I use that word loosely!) with the appropriate bodies, and looking at relevent 'facts' and figures etc.

This descision was opposed by many groups, including Greenpeace who 
challenged the descision in court and got it overturned.

Sarah North, head of the Greenpeace nuclear campaign, said:

"The government's so-called consultation on nuclear power was obviously a sham,
and we're pleased that the judge has agreed with us."

"The government completely failed to consult adequately and even kept relevant documents to themselves. They've now been forced back to the drawing board to
conduct a proper and lengthy review."

Result! 

Read more here.

Environmental Courses for 2007

As usual, CAT (Centre for Alternative Technologies) have their 2007 course schedule up on their website. I'd urge anyone with an interest in the environment, sustainable builiding and technologies, or green living to go take a look and perhaps sign up for something that interests them. It is a fantastic way to learn something new, help your own understanding and environment, plus help support a great organisation.

Couses this year run from Febuary through to November and include:

• Educating with the Eco-Footprint
• Heating with Wood
• Make your own Biodiesel
• The Whole House
• Wind Power
• Water Treatment, Conservation and Recycling
• Install and Test Domestic Photovoltaic Systems
• Working with Willow
• Solar Water Heating for Installers
• Energy Awareness
• Hemp and Lime Conference
• Convert your Engine to Vegetable Oil
• Solar Electric Systems
• Sewage Solutions
• The Economics of Sustainability
• Community Renewable Energy Schemes
• Biomass Conference
• Renewable Energy Systems
• Building with Straw
• Organic Gardening Weekend
• Plant Identification
• Install and Test Domestic Photovoltaic Systems
• Introduction to Renewables
• Third Sustainable Science Symposium
• Alternative Building Methods
• Earth Building
• Natural rendering - clay plaster
• Freshwater Biology
• Build Your Own Wind Turbine
  

And if that wasn't enough, they offer a lot more ... go check them out!

http://www.cat.org.uk/

Save energy ... change colour!

Earlier in the month I talked about software, and whether it could be environmentally friendly. Well, staying on a techie theme, here is an interesting article from WinBeta that was passed on to me by a friend regarding the colour of web pages of all things!

The example given uses Google, but it applies to all web pages, and to be honest I was amazed!

An all white web page uses about 74 watts to display, while an all black page uses only 59 watts. See what happens when you do the math on Google's home page. Astounding.

So what does happen when you do the math? Click here for the full article.

Now what if all web pages were black or dark in colour ... just think how much energy that could save!

Can software be environmentally friendly?

Well, lets start off with a happy new year to you all!

I work in the IT industry, and have always had more than a passing interest in software ... or more precisely, free software. I think everybody loves something for nothing!

But what has this to do with being green, or environmentally friendly?

The answer to this can easily be seen by just walking around the software department of any large computer store ... PC World in the UK is a good example. You'll see row, upon row of big, bright colourful boxes, excessive plastic wrapping, and other eye catching gimmicks.

These boxes contain nothing more than a single disc, and perhaps a booklet or a manual, and yet most are large enough to hold perhaps 20, 30 discs or more!

It's rather sickening to think that the majority of this packaging will quickly end up in the bin as soon as the software gets into the home or office where it is going to be used. It is a dire waste of resources and materials, and all for the sake of self promotion.

It is intended to be big and brash so that the consumer is attracted to it. Unfortunately, its boldness is just such a waste. Even if you recycled most of the packaging, you still have the energy and resources expended to produce it, and spent again to recycle it.

This is where free software has the advantage. Unless it comes on a disc on the cover of a magazine, then you need to find it and download it from the Internet. The ecological advantage of this is now obvious - no waste from over ambitious packaging!

Now this is also true of commercial software or shareware that you can pay for online and download, but, as with most people, I prefer free when I can get it, and if I want a backup of the install file I just burn it to CD.

This brings us to our next problem - where to download from?

There are thousands of sites that you can download software from, the trouble is much of it is not free. It expires after 30 days, or useful features are crippled after a set length of time, or worse still, your computer gets infected with some malware, spyware or some other nasty! Another thing I have found in the past is that it's not always easy to find what you actually need, or there are a dozen titles that 'appear' to do what you want ... leaving you wondering which one do you download?

A good starting point for downloading safe free software is the Lessfuss Collection. It's free to join and has one perhaps two of any type of program considered to be the best of its kind currently available making your choice a lot easier. All of the programs are free to use forever, and they are also selected because they do not contain any adware, spyware, or malware.

Now, with broadband becoming more prevalent, I urge you all to download your software from now on instead of purchasing overly packaged 'boxed' versions. Yes, software can be green or at the very least 'greener' if you follow this advice. So get downloading, and leave those overly packed puddings on the shelf!