The Land of Giants Wins Award, But No Build Date

Here’s a great solution to the NIMBYism that building new transmission dredges up, commissioned by Landsnet, a public company that owns and runs the electrical transmission system in Iceland.

Elegant transmission pylons that look like Art.

“Like the statues of Easter Island, it is envisioned that these one hundred and fifty foot tall, modern caryatids will take on a quiet authority, belonging to their landscape yet serving the people, silently transporting electricity across all terrain, day and night, sunshine or snow.”

The competition required that entries give specific consideration to the visual impact of the pylons,  especially near urban areas and also in the wilderness.

The pylons had to be able to use identical construction technologies, enabling mass production using a library of pre-assembled parts.

These would be as mass-produceable as any pylons now made. Yet small variations among these tall imposing and iconic figures will give them uniquely human attributes. Some would seem to be glancing at each other as they pass. Ones near cities will bow down considerately, (while still being within the specs for safe pylons, of course.) 

The honorable mention entry, halfway between Art and Science, Land of Giants, designed by Choi+Shine Architects, is typical of the future oriented, optimistic style of the firm.

 

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Green Remodeling with Eco Friendly Paint

Here's a great tip for remodeling your home and staying green at the same time:

 

Looking for a way to make your house beautiful?  There are many ways to update an old home, but whether you’re tearing down walls or just adding a little color, one thing you’ll definitely need is paint. 

Virtually hundreds of paint choices fill the shelves of your local hardware store, so selecting a healthy, dependable, and eco friendly paint can take a bit of time, unless . . . you are equipped with the knowledge of a few key qualities that set eco paints apart from the rest.  Before we dip our brushes into that bucket, let’s look at some reasons why run-of-the-mill paint can be hazardous to our health and to the environment.

Potential Hazards of Paint

According to the EPA, the concentration of pollutants inside your home is several times higher than what you’ll find outside, due to the lack of ventilation in rooms compared to the open spaciousness of the great outdoors.  Without proper ventilation, airborne chemicals collect indoors and eventually cause damage to our bodies.  Headaches, dizziness, fatigue, asthma, cancer, and heart disease are all potential side effects of indoor air pollution.  Although the contamination cannot be attributed to any single source, paint and paint-related chemicals play a significant role inside a typical home. 

 

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CINCINNATI REDS E-WASTE COLLECTION DRIVE

About the E-Waste Collection Effort:
Players for the Planet is proud to have joined forces with Global Environmental Services and some of Cincinnati’s leading corporations to bring attention to the community wide effort of recycling. After a successful eWaste event at two Kroger locations in greater Cincinnati, Players for the Planet is looking forward to working with other players, ball clubs and cities in organizing future events. Volunteers from the various companies and environmental organizations can come to meet players from their respective home teams, who are out to support Players for the Planet and to help collect the items from the public, sign autographs, and provide information about how individuals can make their own environmental changes at home, work and school. Accepted items include televisions, radios, computer monitors, hard drives and parts and all other electronic items.

 

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Here are some interesting facts and statistics about sports:

 

The Environmental Impact of sports equipment is huge. Bats, helmets, balls, gloves, skin pads and other sports equipment is made primarily from plastics that are not easily recycled.

A side issue is the amount of water (bottles) energy bars (packaging) Night Lights (energy) and equipment going into landfills every day.

I Just Gotta Tell Ya:

• 30 Million new balls are made every year
• 2.5 Billion gallons of water/day are used to water golf courses
• 2 Million barrels of oil per day in wasted energy from over illumination (night lights
• 70% of the worlds sports balls are produced in Pakistan – where 30% of the population lives below the poverty line.

 

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Josh Dorfman's Tips for Going Green on a Budget

Here is an article to help you go green:

Going green doesn't have to cost a lot of green! Use these simple tips to make a positive impact on the environment while keeping your wallet intact. It's easy, even for the laziest of environmentalists.

• Shut down and unplug electronics. Make small changes to use – and pay for – less energy, like shutting down your computer when you're not using it and plugging your cell phone and other electronics into power strips so you can turn several devices off with one switch.
• Wash your clothes in cold water. By using cold water instead of warm, the average household can avoid emitting 1,281 pounds of carbon dioxide annually and save on energy bills.¹
• Fill your bottle with filtered tap water. Choose the greener solution by using a reusable bottle, like the FilterForGood bottle, and filling it with filtered tap water. If you use a Brita filtration system you can make another responsible choice by recycling your pitcher filter when you replace it, which should be about every two months (or every 40 gallons). Find out more about recycling Brita filters here.
• Update your wardrobe for less. Instead of consuming new products, trade fashionable clothes, accessories, cosmetics and shoes for free (you only pay for shipping). By swapping merchandise you can lower the amount of harmful emissions caused by the manufacturing process. Check out swapstyle.com to learn more.
• Exchange CDs, DVDs and books instead of buying. Now you can avoid purchasing new products without forfeiting your entertainment needs. Visit swapacd.com, swapadvd.comand paperbackswap.com for access to thousands of CDs, books and DVDs.

 

Click here to learn more.

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Greening the World Bank

Here is a great green earth article: 

When I think Green Living, my first thought is not about what the World Bank is doing. But because they are behind so many international infrastructure, lending and development projects, how they view green development protocols and initiatives is important. Recently they took what I think is a big step forward in appointing Daniel Kammen, a UC-Berkeley energy professor, to lead their push for alternative energy programs in developing countries. His role will be as the chief technical specialist for all renewable energy and energy efficiency projects and was newly created for him “amid unprecedented demand from developing countries for support to address development and climate change as interlinked challenges.” The overarching goal of his position is to address difficulties in getting the 1.5 billion people who do not have clean, reliable and affordable energy services.

  Kammen is the founding director of Berkeley’s Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory and has done extensive research and consulting on design and implementation of renewable energy systems. His new position will complement the appointment of Andrew Steer as the World Bank’s first special envoy on climate change earlier this summer. Steer is in charge of over $6 billion in projects through the World Bank’s Climate Change Investment Fund, and Kammen’s new position will provide the technical direction for the projects.

 

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Did You Know You Can Get Free Solar on Your Home in Eight US States?

You are lucky if you live in one of these 8 states and want to go green:

There are now at least eight states in the US where you can get a free solar system to supply your home’s electricity at a lower rate than your utility does. These eight states allow private companies to compete with their utilities that sell power by the kilowatt hour, through a “lease” or a power purchase agreement, or PPA.

The three companies that stepped in to offer these $0 down options are Solar City (OR, CA,TX),SunRun (CA, AZ, CO, NJ, MA) and Gro Solar (PA, CA). Sungevity also offers yet another PPA, providing yet a third option for Californians.

Typically, the way they do this is to find investors or banks who will front the money for a large number of installations, and they own the system, so you don’t have to apply for a bank loan to put solar on your roof.

Once installed on your roof, you either make lease payments or just pay monthly for electricity by the kilowatt hour, the same way you pay your current electric utility.

Companies offering leases or PPAs can in many cases offer $0 down. You get a free solar system and start paying a lower monthly rate than before.

Click here to read more.

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