It's Easy Being Green

I am a coffee fiend.  Notice I did not say that I’m a coffee addict although I’m sure my friends and family would make a very different testament regarding that label.  My everlasting search for a good “cuppa joe” exceeded my expectations at my favorite local coffee shop yesterday.

Yes, I said a local coffee shop.  I do frequent Starbucks and am a fan when I can’t locate a local barrista to pour me the perfect cup.  My favorite local shop here in Evansville, Indiana is the Penny Lane Coffeehouse. Located in the historic downtown arts district, Penny Lane is an eclectic collecting place for people seeking art, organic vegan eats and of course organic, fair-trade coffee drinks and tea.

These are the composting coffee cups and sleeves used by one of my favorite local coffee shops and made by World Centric

My cup of coffee sent me over the moon yesterday when I realized they had switched up their paper to-go cups.  Emblazoned across the bottom of the paper cups are the words “100% Compostable – Paper with BioPlastic Lining”.  If you read my blog regularly, you know I have a compost heap going in our tiny backyard and divert most of our organic garbage to that oasis of renewal.  Paper coffee cups and drink cups have always bothered me when you think about the amount of waste involved and that’s why I always try to take them home and put them in the recycle bin.

With these new cups though, the environmental impact becomes even easier because I can simply toss them in my composter when I get home, only to feed my garden several months down the road.  I wondered how truly compostable these paper coffee cups were, so I visited the manufacturer’s website.  World Centric claims their cups will break down in a home composter in just 2-4 months.  While most paper cups are lined with polyethylene, a plastic that isn’t recyclable or bio-degradable, World Centric’s paper cup is lined with polylactic acid or PLA.

That PLA lining is made with starch (e.g. corn, potato, tapioca etc), cellulose, soy protein, lactic acid and other ingredients that are said to break down without any hazards or toxins left behind.  The cups are made with sustainably harvested fibers and they say they use Elemental Chlorine Free bleach to whiten the cups.

I’m going to see just how long it takes for World Centric’s paper cups to break down in my compost pile.  I’ve tossed them in and I’ll let you know what kind of results I notice.  Meanwhile, I do like the fact that someone is trying to produce to-go containers with less of an environmental impact than Styrofoam, plastics or non-recyclable papers.  Maybe I’m going to see just how long it takes for World Centric’s paper cups to break down in my compost pile.  I’ve tossed them in and I’ll let you know what kind of results I notice.  Meanwhile, I do like the fact that someone is trying to produce to-go containers with less of an environmental impact than Styrofoam, plastics or non-recyclable papers.  Maybe Starbucks can jump on that bandwagon and really evoke some world change with their cups of joe!

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Who knew an activity that sounds so dirty on the surface could be so beneficial, not only for our planet but also for yourself?  This morning a dumpster dive find that required really no diving came in especially helpful.

Jack, our orange tabby cat, decided to projectile vomit all over the beige carpet this morning.  In a feined attempt I tried to catch him and get him to a solid surface instead of puking on the carpet.  Instead I was left cleaning up quite a mess, hoping it wouldn’t add another stain to the already pet stained by the previous owner carpet.

After cleaning up the chunkies, I sprinkled the vomit with Borax (I’ve just discovered in my greeness it can be used for virtually any cleaning task you might have) and let it soak for a couple of hours.  Then I used the nifty carpet steamer we found by the dumpster the other day to suck it up and scrub it down.  We found out the reason it was put by the dumpster is because the hot water container leaks all over the place when you attach it to the steamer.  The simple fix is to just hold the container and squirt the water you need on the spot and then scrub it and suck it out of the carpet.  It may not be as convenient but the machine still works and doesn’t need to clog up our landfills anymore than they already are.

The free carpet cleaner we found sitting by the dumpster. It still works!

Another great dumpster find I made was back in Arizona when we lived in an apartment complex there.  Someone who moved out had left a 32″ TV by the dumpster and a portable, rolling Rediwhip freezer like you’d see in the grocery story.  Both worked so how can you pass up extra freezer space and a bigger TV for free?!

The free Reddi-wip freezer I found next to a dumpster in Arizona. The working items people throw out is sickening!

Have you found any great finds that someone else put out for the trash?  Don’t be ashamed, share your story!

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If you haven’t already read my brief review on a new book profiling modern architecture and alternative energy, click here.

A new book profiling 10 modern homes and how they're built with alternative energy useage in mind

Lori Ryker, author of Off The Grid: Modern Homes + Alternative Energy, grew up in Texas and has lived several places around the world. She now lives in Livingston, Montana and teaches at Montana State University’s School of Architecture and is a partner of Ryker/Nave Design. I recently had the opportunity to ask Ryker some questions about her new book and her thoughts on the future of sustainable living.

Q: What do you think is the biggest misconception people have about living off the grid?
A: That someone else should take the first step, that alternative energy is something of the future.

Q: You discuss how you think living off the grid brings people closer to where we live, making us more involved in how we live. Why do you think it’s important for more people to be connected to where and how they live?
A: Understanding where we live in the world and the reality of what it takes to live in that place (without the support of mechanical/big energy that creates a pseudo-environment) helps us take responsibility for the place in which we live, and the planet in general. Understanding the conditions of where we live help us make healthier and more responsible choices for environmental conditions such as clean water, air and landscapes; local food sources including plants and animals. Peter Berg coined a phrase in the 1970’s called bioregionalism, which addresses how we live in a place with particular identifiable physical and environmental features that then influence the use and consumption of local foods, materials and native plants, among other things. In the same way, living responsibly with alternative energy requires the knowledge and understanding of regions, bioregions and particular places so that we most efficiently employ the natural resource, such as sun or wind. Such a quality of life also makes us more grounded and invested in ourselves and the world.

Q: Have you found that a lot of people don’t think modern architecture and green features like off the grid living can be combined together?
A: No. I find that most people believe this relationship is normal. However, even three to five years ago this was not the case. There has been a strong and successful popular media push in the past few years to dispel the perception that living off the grid means living in the back-woods somewhere.

Q: You say the book is all about great living in great architecture. These homes certainly aren’t like the earth ships of the 60’s and 70’s are they?
A: No, but every once in a while I drive by an earth ship style place and think to myself, they are still quite sophisticated in their energy use and ability to connect people to the place in which they live, even if they do not appeal to everyone. I would argue that earth ships are also a “style” of architecture. An architect or designer could use the same materials and strategies of an earth ship today and arrive at a vastly different form of expression.

Q: You talk a lot about resource extraction and what you call “dirty energy”. What do you think it will take for people to understand how big of an environmental impact their home has?
A: A completely different way of evaluating home construction and energy use. Such as how bank loans are made, or how homes are taxed, how a builder accounts for the construction of the home and the materials used. In the meantime, we need alternative energy to become more affordable, better methods of measurement of an individual’s energy use and means to control particular components of energy use. Such as being able to separate out use of heating and cooling from media, not simply unplugging. We need more accountability. Simple things such as timers on lights and showers that are already in use in other parts of the world. These strategies remind us that the Earth is not limitless.

Keep checking back for the second half of my Q&A with Lori Ryker coming up later this week.  That’s when I’ll also post the details behind how to enter the contest to win a copy of Lori’s book.  You can get an early entry now by subscribing to my RSS Feed and then posting a comment on this article.

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There’s a lot of talk these days centering around living life on Earth a bit greener than we have been. Green living, alternative energy and sustainability are all buzz words surrounding the movement to live more in harmony with our environment. Some might question though whether that movement can really be partnered with the construction of a new home utilizing modern architectural designs.

A new book profiling 10 modern homes and how they're built with alternative energy useage in mind

Lori Ryker’s book titled Off The Grid: Modern Homes + Alternative Energy shows that you really can live in a beautifully designed, modern home while reducing your demand for energy. The 160-page glossy, hard-backed book profiles ten homes around the globe and shows how they’ve overcome complete dependence on the grid and leave a smaller footprint on the Earth.

Through example and illustrations, Ryker shows how each technology from geothermal heat pumps, wind turbines and solar arrays, can be integrated into the beauty and design of a modern home. The homes profiled in the book aren’t straw bale homes or Earthships. They range in size from small to large and sparse to intricately decorated. If you’re embarking on a journey to build a new modern house and have considered making it more green, Ryker’s book might be just the ticket to turning your visions into reality.

Stop by later in the week for a Q&A chat with Ryker and I’ll also tell you how you can have a shot at winning a copy of her new book.

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The so-called “Dog Days of Summer” are paying off in the veggie garden this week. My wife and I have spent quite a bit of time outside pulling weeds, smashing squash beetles, plucking Tomato Hornworms and giving our little 10×4 foot plot of wholesome paradise some good ‘ol TLC. Mother nature has been a big help too, squeezing some much needed rain out of a passing cloud or two at least once a week. That’s apparently a rarity out here in southwestern Indiana during August but who’s complaining? We’ll gladly take the free water!

Our collander is brimming with Friday's tomato harvest, sporting a fresh batch of roma tomatoes, cherry tomatoes and slicing tomatoes.

On Friday I had to make a mad dash through my tomato patch to harvest what was ripe before the plants sucked up all the rain water. I’ve been having a big problem with tomatoes expanding way too quickly with all the rain and then splitting just as they ripen. Since I’ve been picking preemptively, they’ve been faring much better though. Our roma tomatoes are producing a bumper crop of pear-shaped goodness that will be perfect with pasta. The cherry tomatoes haven’t let up either, gifting us with a fresh flush of fruit every couple of days.

On Saturday our baby was fast asleep for an afternoon nap so we decided to hit the garden again and do some cleanup. Squash beetles totally annihilated both of our zucchini plants. They bore into the stems of the plants and kill their ability to suck up water. They eventually get the wilt disease and die. I would normally be sad about it but those two plants each produced about ten pounds or more a piece of fresh summer squash.

A weekend bounty of fresh vegetables for the picking. Clockwise from top left: Handfuls of cherry and roma tomatoes, lemon cucumber, bell peppers and an Orange Oxheart heirloom tomato.

While we were out there dealing with the squash beetles we harvested another basket full of produce. Saturday’s take included more roma tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, lemon cucumbers, bell peppers and an Orange Oxheart heirloom tomato. All have really taken off and produced wonderfully in southwestern Indiana. We can’t wait to enjoy the fresh tastes of each of them.

My failures were definitely sweet corn, yellow squash, pickling cucumbers and pumpkins. I’ve been struggling with powdery mildew spreading from one cucumber vine to the next and then it spread onto my pumpkins. Both are still putting on fresh leaves and trying to set fruit but the mildew just marches on. My sweet corn growth was very stunted and produced some very tiny ears of corn, small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. I didn’t follow proper planting recommendations by planting at least four rows so that was probably the cause there. Yellow squash were attacked by squash beetles early on and never really had a chance.

We still have another three months to go before the first average fall frost so I think our harvest days are far from over. I’m also going to try my hands at growing some fall vegetables this year and am getting ready to tackle that project this week.

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If you’re not an avid 60 Minutes watcher or missed Sunday night’s episode, you missed a great interview and profile of Alice Waters, the so-called mother of the slow food movement.  Shamefully, I have a couple of books with forwards by Alice Waters but didn’t know who she was until last night.

Alice is a staunch advocate of local farmer’s markets and stands strong in support of sustainable agriculture.  Her L.A. based restaurants, including the world reknowned Chez Panisse, utilize price fixed menus that change daily as farm fresh produce becomes available and goes out of season.  She’s also spearheaded the planting of a vegetable garden outside San Francisco’s city hall, a new classroom program that gets kids outside into a garden teaching them how to grow their own fresh and sustainable food and how to cook it and recently a call to plant a victory garden outside the White House.  You too can sign the petition to the Obamas by clicking that link.

If you didn’t get to see the story, I recommend you click this link and watch it now:

Alice Waters’ Crusade for Better Food

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Home renovations might look more green in due time thanks in part to the latest economic stimulus plan put in motion by President Obama.  The economic rescue package passed by the Bush administration last Fall renewed the IRS Section 25C tax credit, which credited homeowners 10% of the purchase costs of green renovations with a $500 lifetime cap.  Contractors claimed it wasn’t enough to motivate homeowners to sign contracts and pursue green renovations.

Obama’s latest economic stimulus plan sweetened the tax credit though so homeowners will now have more incentive to make their house more energy efficient and environmentally friendly.  The credit has essentially been trippled to 30% of the purchase cost with a lifetime cap of $1,500.  Some renovations that would qualify for the credits include beefing up your insulation, buying new and more efficient furnaces, air conditioners and heat pumps, installing new roofing and energy efficient windows and doors.  Reportedly the list of qualified items is also about to expand so more green renovations may qualify for a credit.  You have until 2010 to apply for the credits.

For more information on the 25C tax credit check out this link.

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