Blogs

How to get paid to recycle

Don Willmott, Forecast Earth Correspondent — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 17:24:31 PDT

I'm just cynical enough to believe the only way to change people's most ingrained habits is to hit 'em where it hurts: in their wallets. Systems of financial penalties and rewards have power. Tax cigarettes high enough, and some people will quit smoking. Pay kids $100 for perfect attendance, and they won't skip school.

Green Daily has found a new company that agrees with me. The innovative RecycleBank will reward you for recycling, and it'll pay by the pound. Chances are, your town or city demands that you recycle at least some of your household trash already, so here's a way to get paid for what you're already doing.

In the RecycleBank system, the truck that picks up your recycling bin, weighs it, and that amount is converted into points that turn into coupons that turn into savings when you shop.

Companies such as Coca-Cola, PetSmart, Stonyfield Farm, CVS, and Kraft are participating, with more expected soon.

As Green Daily points out, one potentially bad side effect of this plan is that it implicitly encourages you to go ahead and make more waste, since the more you trash, the more you make.

We'll see how that goes, but in the meantime, it's a clever idea that should be given a chance to succeed. Right now it's kicking off in 13 states, and you're invited to ask your town to participate.

Don Willmott's blog posts are provided by LifeWire, a part of The New York Times Company.

Green Jobs Guidebook helps you get a job in the new economy

Tim O'Connor — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 08:31:13 PDT

The Environmental Defense Fund is launching a resource for people who want to enter the green job market.

Our new Green Jobs Guidebook is a first of its kind, addressing everything from where to get training to where to find good-paying jobs that help the environment. The guide focuses on California, but much of the information is applicable anywhere in the country.

I co-authored the guide with California Green Jobs Associate Amy Pasciucco. Together we painstakingly researched green employment opportunities and expected salaries, compiled growth projections, and identified the experience and education levels required by employers.

And we didn't stop there.

The Green Jobs Guidebook identifies job training and placement assistance programs across the state of California. The training programs are at all levels, ranging from paid union apprenticeships to free non-profit organization job training to formal degree programs. We combed through hundreds of community college program listings to identify schools offering green curriculums and apprenticeship programs.

Our research showed there are tremendous opportunities in the green economy for people at all skill levels. Whether you're looking for a job right out of school or you'd like to gain new skills, you should find the guide useful.

We created the Green Jobs Guidebook to connect job seekers with opportunities. Please take a look and tell us what you think.

This post is by Tim O'Connor, an attorney and climate change analyst for the California Initiative at Environmental Defense Fund.

Could green investment have prevented the economic meltdown?

Sheryl Canter — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 17:09:50 PDT

Former President Bill Clinton gave an interesting analysis recently on the Late Show With David Letterman of how we got into our current economic mess.

It all started at the beginning of the decade with lots of money to invest and no place to invest it. (For more on this, listen to the excellent report from This American Life on "The Giant Pool of Money".)

Since most of the economic activity at this time was in real estate, investment bankers invented something called "mortgage-backed securities." This worked well and they wanted more, so lenders started giving mortgages to people with no ability to repay them -- leading to the current mess.

We could have avoided this problem, Bill Clinton said, if government had provided incentives for investment in the next big thing:Â clean energy.

EDF's position is that the green economy is our best hope for the future. The incentive we need to make this happen is a cap on global warming pollution.

This post is by Sheryl Canter, an online writer and editorial manager at Environmental Defense Fund.

Frugal expert's guide to green

Huddler's Green Home — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 17:08:37 PDT

Huddlerâs tight-knit community of eco-minded consumers share their knowledge about sustainable products and services ranging from electric cars to organic toothpaste. Click here to participate.

These days there's a lot of talk about "going green" and saving money. Some steps are easy to take and don't cost anything. Others are easy to do if you have money to spend.

The following improvements cost $55,000 (total) and save about $18,000 over 5 years. They recoup their full cost, and more, with additional time.

Do thisâ¦	Conserves thisâ¦	Costsâ¦	Saves...	Saves in 5 yearsâ¦	ROI over 5 years
Â It's electric!
Install solar panels.	Energy	$35,000-$45,000 for a 5 kW system (minus $2,000 in tax credits or so)	$600 per year in energy costs	$3,000	7.9% (39.5% over 25 years but lots of good karma and positive environmental externalities)
Â Potty mouth
Install low flow (or composting) toilets. Â	Water - The average family of 4 uses 27,000 gallons of water for toilet flushing every year.	A low-flow toilet costs about $50 more than a conventional toilet. A composting toilet costs about $1,100 more.	With a low-flow toilet, $25 per year; with a composting toilet, $43 in water costs	$125 (low-flow), $215 (composting)	250% (low-flow), 20% (composting)
Install a greywater system to recycle some of your used water from your sinks, laundry, shower, etc. Â	Water	Variable (averages roughly $300)	3,000 gallons of water per month = $5 on water bill = $60 per year	$300 ($720 over 12 year lifespan)	100% (240% over lifespan) Â
Â Baby, it's cold outside
If your heating equipment is over 15 years old, install a more efficient unit like a geothermal heat pump.	Energy	$3,500-$7,500	Can save 30- 70% on heating and 20- 50% on cooling costs over conventional systems ($358-$1,475 per year)	$4,582.50 ($18,330 over 20 year lifespan)	83% (333% over life)
Add insulation to your home. Â	Energy	Complete insulation on a single family home averages $2,500-$5,500	Using R-22 insulation (which is 7" deep of fiber glass or rock wool or 6" of cellulose) can save 5-25% on your heating and cooling costs ($92-458 per winter based on 2007 averages for heating oil bills).	$1,375	34% (pays back in as fast as 9 years)
Plant trees for passive solar design. Â	Energy - Deciduous trees shade your home in summer. In winter, they will lose their leaves and let sunshine.	Three 8' trees might cost $1,500	$100-$250 in energy costs annually	$875	58% (pays back in about 8 years) Â Â
Install Energy Star rated windows. Â	Energy	$3,000-$10,000 (for a one-story single family home)	$25-$110 per year if you're replacing double paned windows, $125-450 per year if you're replacing single paned windows per year	$337.50 (replacing doubles - $2,700 over 40-year lifespan); $1,437.50 (replacing singles - $11,500 over 40-year lifespan)	5% (41% over life) for replacements of double paned windows; 22% (177% over life) for replacements of single paned windows
Â Vroom, vroom
Get a high-mileage vehicle. The Toyota Prius is roughly double the average fuel efficiency in the U.S. But if you're filthy rich, might as well spring for the Tesla Roadster, right?	Gasoline	$5,000 extra for the Prius or roughly $90,000 extra for a Tesla.	With a hybrid, 200 gallons per year at $4/gallon = $800 per year 464 gallons per year with an electric vehicle = $1,856 per year	$4,000 for a hybrid; $9,280 for an EV	80% for a hybrid (payback of a little more than 6 years); 10% for a high-end EV (payback of 48 years) Â Â
Â This little light of mine
Use LED light bulbs instead of incandescent or compact fluorescent light bulbs.	Energy	$60/bulb	A 5-watt LED will save you roughly $375 over the course of its lifetime (compared to a 75-watt incandescent) â running 12 hours a day, it will last you 11 years.	$170	283% (625% over its lifetime)
Install photo cells or occupancy sensors to turn off lights for you when you forget.	Energy	A manual-on occupancy sensor costs about $45.	Using 2004 average electric rates, fitting a 100-watt outdoor light bulb with a motion sensor - instead of operating it each night for 10 hours - will save about $33 per year.	$165	367%
Â Think tank(less)
Get a tankless water heater or a solar water heater. Water heating typically accounts for 14% of your energy bill (about $266 per year).	Energy	$200-$1200 for a tankless system; $6,000-$6,500 for a solar water heater	Electric tankless water heaters generally cost 10-20% ($40 - $80/yr) less to operate than comparable tank-type water heaters. Gas savings may be about 20-40% ($50-$100/yr).	$300 for electric tankless; $375 for gas tankless; $1,330 for solar	About 48% for tankless (193% over 20-year lifespan); 22% for solar (89% over 20-year lifespan)
Â Waste not, want not
Get a compost bin. Â	Waste	$125-$300	$50 in enriched soil, fertilizers, and growth enhancers every year	$250	118%
Xeriscape with native and drought resistant plants. Â	Water - Most lawns need about 1 inch of water a week at minimum (which uses 620 gallons of water per 1,000 sq-ft)	$1.37-$10 per square foot of property	At least $52 for a 1,000 sq-ft lawn in watering costs and $200 savings in maintenance costs per year	$1,260	42% (if you spend $3/sq-ft â pays back in less than 12 years)

Definitions:

ROI stands for "return on investment." It is an assessment of whether the investment is justified by the savings it will create. In this case, we look at the ratio of savings during 5 years to the cost of the products (which are frequently one time expenditures).

In the case that the change does not cost anything, you'll find "N/A" in the ROI column. This stands for "not applicable" because you are investing only time and brain power. You could also think of the ROI as infinite in those cases.

Identify greenwashing with new website

Jaymi Heimbuch — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 07:18:48 PDT

Thereâs a difference between something being green, and a company putting a green spin on a product. A new startup called GoodGuide is to be a source for free, scientist-verified data about products we purchase so we can ID for ourselves if what weâre consuming is as green as the company says it is.

Drawing from more than 650 data sources, GoodGuide built a database that figures out what is physically healthy, socially healthy, and environmentally healthy, so that people can compare products and make their priority decisions. It is a great sibling site to the new Wikia Green.

GoodGuide is also implementing ways you can get the info while youâre standing in a isle staring at your options. You can get text messages right now, and soon there will be an iPhone app available.

The site is in beta now, yet still has over 61,000 products already listed. Good to know that while weâre staring at 15 different kinds of toothpaste, we have someone to help us pick one.

Via Wired

Finding the green job of your dreams

Trystan L. Bass — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 13:40:18 PDT

The times they are a changin'. The U.S. economy isn't what it used to be, and old jobs are becoming old hat. But new technologies and shifting priorities are creating opportunities for job-seekers, especially if you want to make a living while leaving a lighter footprint on the planet.

Our own HotJobs points out several top recession-proof fields right now. The areas of education, energy, health care, and the environment itself are all good bets. And greenies will be glad to know that these overlap with E: The Environmental Magazine's list of booming eco-friendly job sectors.

Other hot fields include environmental law, information technology, government planning and land use, and waste management and recycling. Plus, jobs such as accounting, human resources, and project management continue to be needed within environmental organizations of all types.

So where do you start your green job search? We've collected some of the best websites for job listings and other resources for a new earth-focused career.

Sustainable Business Green Dream Jobs: Large list of positions at all levels with environmentally conscious employers. From solar water heating system installer to web producer, from human resources assistant to fish campaign organizer, you're bound to find something intriguing here.

Idealist.org Job Search: Openings at nonprofits; search on "environmental & ecology" or "energy conservation & green living" for unique listings such as organic farm manager in Southwest Florida and video editor for the Clinton Foundation.

Green Jobs: This site is all about the burgeoning area of renewable energy. If you're interested in solar, wind, or biofuels, whether installing, engineering, or selling, check this one out.

EnvironmentalCareer.com: Lists hundreds of jobs, especially in environmental sciences and energy fields. Also has opportunities to transfer existing skills into green businesses -- for example, a senior billing coordinator position for environmental consultants.

Business for Social Responsibility Jobs Board: Worldwide positions at companies that value people, communities, and the environment. Includes big names such as the Walt Disney Company.

Grist Job Board: Environmental groups from around the country post their jobs here. Also, Grist's Kevin Doyle has a series of articles about the green job market.

TreeHugger Job Board: Dozens of green business and organizations list their openings here. Subscribe to the RSS feed for the latest updates.

Jobs With the National Park Service: Love the great outdoors? You could work anywhere from Hawaii's volcanoes to Yellowstone's geysers. The park service has 16,000 permanent employees and another 10,000 seasonal employees each year.

World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms: If you're interested in the fast-growing field of organic food (no pun intended), you could volunteer on a farm to get experience. This site connects volunteers with farms around the planet.

Another green tip: Many companies encourage applying online these days, so you can email your resume. But if you have to print it, look for high-quality paper made with recycled fibers. No point killing trees when you're applying for an earth-friendly job!

Assault and Battery: On hybrid myths

Umbra Fisk, Grist.org — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 14:02:00 PDT

Dear Umbra,

Could you help me clear up a rumor about cars? I've heard that although hybrids reduce your carbon footprint because they use less gas, the process for mining the nickel in the hybrid batteries produces far more pollution than the process for regular car batteries. So are we really making a difference by buying hybrids? I personally decided to get a more fuel-efficient car and bought a used Honda Fit, which I love. Did I make the right choice?

Kimberly W.
Raleigh, N.C.

Dearest Kimberly,

As long as you're buying a fuel-efficient, low-emissions vehicle, you're doing the right thing. That philosophy is broad enough to accommodate all our pocketbooks and typical passenger loads and yet narrow enough to give us some motivational guilt. Of course, small hybrids are the most fuel-efficient vehicles. But sometimes we just don't buy them -- they aren't the right fit (sorry, couldn't resist).

As far as I can tell, the "hybrids ain't so great" rumors (about the Toyota Prius and Honda Civic Hybrid, mainly) are patently untrue. There was the fabulous urban legend in which Hummers beat Priuses in eco-friendliness over a lifetime, a bit of bogusness propagated by the likes of George Will (and thoroughly debunked, in case you were wondering). And then there's the rumor about the nickel in hybrid batteries, which is based in good thinking -- are we robbing Peter to pay Paul? -- but turns out to be similarly deceptive.

The manufacturing process for a Prius is more energy intensive than the process for a non-hybrid of its size. However, according to research from Toyota, the Argonne National Laboratory, and the Rocky Mountain Institute, to name a few, the fuel savings you get in a hybrid more than make up for the initial eco-hit. (For a user-friendly rendition of all the science, check out the analysis in Slate).

There is indeed nickel mining involved in the production of the Prius' nickel-metal hydride batteries, and nickel mining has nasty impacts. One fun fact you can tease out of the Hummer rumor, though, is that the Hummer's frame contains twice as much nickel as a Prius frame. Once a Prius begins life on the road, moreover, it requires far less petroleum- related environmental destruction than similar non-hybrid cars. Consider: Your Fit is getting about 32 mpg on a good day, while a Prius or Civic Hybrid gets in the high 40s. (A Hummer, if you're in need of wincing, gets about 14 mpg.)

In a decent life-cycle analysis, the unique pollutants from battery production, lower fuel usage, and other key automaking components are translated into comparable units and stacked up against each other. Here I defer to my fellow eco-advice columnist, Ask Pablo, who examines a widely respected automobile life-cycle model and compares the Prius, Hummer, Toyota Highlander, and Highlander Hybrid. Despite the battery issue, he concludes that the Prius is indisputably the greenest car, followed by the Highlander Hybrid, the Highlander, and (dead last) the Hummer.

So what should one do about choosing a new car? I've been thoroughly enjoying the insights of dear Clark Williams-Derry, a longtime Gristian, on this point. Clark has put much thought into the costs and benefits of hybrids, new cars, and used cars; I highly recommend considering his worthy idea that money saved through buying a non-hybrid used car instead of a more expensive hybrid can be put to use for other environmental protections.

In short, the Prius and Civic Hybrid come out on top in the new/used/hybrid debates. And they should: They have the highest mileage in the gasoline fleet, very low emissions, and great performance. A used car, however, requires no new manufacturing impact, and for that reason it's also a fabulous choice. A used Prius would be the best of all worlds. Still, the Fit is considered one of the top ten most economical new cars by both Edmunds.com and Consumer Reports -- and if the Prius or Civic didn't exist, it would be considered incredibly fuel-efficient. Use it sparingly and wisely, and you'll never look back.

Fittingly,
Umbra

Hybrid cars hold their value, proven again

Trystan L. Bass — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 14:10:50 PDT

You already know you'll save gas by driving a hybrid, and nobody expects gas prices to drop dramatically soon. Of course, a hybrid car tends to cost more upfront than a similar non-hybrid version. Some people say you won't really save in the long-run because of this.

But the smart folks at the Rocky Mountain Institute crunched the numbers and proved that a Toyota Prius holds its value over three years and saves enough in gas to be less expensive than either a non-hybrid Honda Accord or Civic.

Now the car fans at Eco-Modder did their own math and -- no surprise -- proved the same thing, just with more cars.

Using good, old Kelly Blue Book prices, Eco-Modder compared four popular family vehicles: Ford F150 pickup truck, Honda Civic sedan, Toyota Prius sedan, and Dodge Caravan minivan. They used stats on the 2004 and 2008 models of the cars.

The most glaring difference was between the pickup truck and the hybrid. The 2004 Ford truck retained a mere 37% of its value, yet a 2004 Toyota hybrid still earns 95% of its value. A used Prius was worth more than any other used car, and in general, the more fuel-efficient cars (the Prius and the Civic) held on to more value than the gas guzzlers.

According to Green Fuels Forecast, the Kelly Blue Book and Edmunds predictions for future values of used cars say that hybrids are continuing to rise. The Ford Escape Hybrid should keep 77.5% of its value, and the Honda Civic Hybrid may retain 62%.

With a recent report from auto industry insiders concluding that all new cars will be hybrids by 2020, this is just further proof of the vehicle's staying power.

Hybrids aren't just green cars -- they could save you green too.

CT residents get solar panels with no upfront cost

Hank Green — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 11:23:56 PDT

A new program for Connecticut homeowners is promising to explode the installation of home solar systems in the state. Basically, the state will be providing low interest loans to anyone of "moderate or low" income.

The solar systems will be installed for free, and then the residents will pay a flat low rate, presumably in exchange for the power the panels generate. While the upfront costs of solar panels (often more than $30,000) are out of reach for most homeowners, they actually promise to save money over the life of the panels.

So the state is absorbing the up-front costs of the panels for anyone who makes less than 150% of the median income of their area. The households will pay a monthly rate of less than $120. This should represent a nice steady source of income for the state. And, of course, it has wonderful environmental consequences as well, all for less than the cost of some cable TV packages.

Still, they only expect about 1,000 homeowners to take advantage of the program over the next three years. It seems to me that more people would be interested in taking advantage of the program. It's possible that CT is limiting applications at first to ensure viability of the program.

Similar solar lease programs have taken off in California as well, and Wal-Mart has installed many of it's solar panels with similar financing techniques.

So if you're a Nutmegger, go to the CT Solar Lease site and see if you can get into the program. And if you have any report on how it goes, email me at tips@ecogeek.org.

Location, location, location: the true cost of locality

Maria Stamas — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 08:34:06 PDT

With the housing market down and oil prices on the rise, affordable living seems far less attainable than it did a few years ago.

As costs continue to compound -- from housing and transport to goods and foods -- it's tempting to throw up your hands in defeat.Â

At the Rocky Mountain Institue, instead of thinking of all these as separate problems in need of separate solutions, we like to think of them as systemic problems in need of whole-systems solutions.

Rather than address high gas prices by looking for the cheapest gas in your zip code, we find solutions that will reduce our need to use that gas in the first place.

So, too, with housing.

Financial planners often suggest spending less than 30 percent of your annual income on rent or a mortgage. As a result, it seems logical to choose cheaper housing on the outskirts of an urban center.

But typically the farther away your housing is from work and town, the higher and more inflexible your transport costs are.Â

This makes intuitive sense. Recently, however, the Center for Neighborhood Technology, Brookings Institution, and The Center for Transit-Oriented Development tested the idea empirically by measuring the true cost of housing in metropolitan areas around the United States.

The groups' analysis formed this Affordability Index.Â Among the findings, people who live close to transit, jobs, schools, and retail -- typically in cities and inner-ring suburbs -- spend up to $2,100 less per annum on gasoline than residents of outer-ring suburbs.

The Affordable Index tool also tracks what $4 a gallon of gasoline means for transport costs and housing location.

The take-home message: Living in city centers, though often a bit pricier, may be more economical in the long run, especially once transport costs are factored in.

At the city or municipality level, co-locating jobs, shops, and housing is one of those integrated solutions that helps lessen the pain of high oil prices.Â It also builds community, reduces environmental impacts, improves local economies, and enhances convenience.

Examples from Europe to the United States are confirming the reality of these benefits.

Meanwhile, if moving isn't in your near-term plans, taking mass transit, carpooling, and using car-sharing services can also ease the pressure on your pocket book.

Maria Stamas is an analyst at Rocky Mountain Institute.

Blogs

How to get paid to recycle

Green Jobs Guidebook helps you get a job in the new economy

Could green investment have prevented the economic meltdown?

Frugal expert's guide to green

It's electric!

Potty mouth

Baby, it's cold outside

Vroom, vroom

This little light of mine

Think tank(less)

Waste not, want not