Living Green.

[biodieselman]

Tina, I found a 12-minute video of making biodiesel very similar to the process I use, except the system I use virtually eliminates the sodium-methoxide fumes from mixing lye and methanol to make the catalyst. When you get to the end of the video you will see me, just like the guy in the video, driving past the gas stations .

The restaurant I contract with is producing more used vegetable oil than I can burn while driving my truck. I've been having this brain-fart to make my own co-gen plant in the pool pump yard. I'm wanting to get a diesel-powered generator that is water cooled. I would run the generator 3-4 hours a day to spin my electrical meter backwards while the pool pump is running, because it takes a lot of energy to pump water. I would reclaim the heat from the generator by using the pool water to cool the generator and co-generating heat to heat the pool. Dee would love to go swimming in the wintertime if the pool were heated (especially if we can heat it practically free!).

We're also tinkering with the idea of making a little hothouse to guarantee tomatos and cucumbers in the wintertime by using a little $300 diesel-fired furnace to heat the hothouse.

[biodieselman]

Feb, 2nd L.A. garden update.

First photo shows the 1st planting of broccoli on the left. Smaller side shoots form after the central head is picked, extending harvest. The 2nd broccoli planting on the right is starting to produce its first central heads. Soon there will too much broccoli for Risible & me to eat. I'll have to share with the neighbors. We have had cold weather recently & the growth of the 3rd planting has dramatically slowed. The top growth will remain relatively small while developing root structure. There will be a warm spell come early spring, and there will a rapid growth surge from all those roots. Broccoli will seem to form overnight.

The second photo shows the 2nd planting of sugar snap peas on the left, which is starting to flower. Well I can see the flowers; you might see two white spots by the support pole. The peas are at least 5 feet high & soon will be bearing the sweetest peas you've ever had. On the right are Better Boy tomatoes from last spring. They had a heavy top cover of foliage which was damaged by light frost but protected the tomatoes lower on the vines. You might notice a couple of ripe tomatoes on this side of the trellis with several more on the other side. Yes, I've still got vine ripe tomatoes in winter.

The last photo shows the 1st planting of sugar snap peas that suffered a severe setback from a late fall heat wave. They are producing a few peas, just enough to tease the taste buds, causing eager anticipation waiting for the 2nd planting to produce. Siberian tomatoes on the right, planted late fall, were too small when the frost really nuked them. They had set a lot of fruit, which you might see to the far right, but had no excess top foliage to protect them. I photographed them before pruning the dead growth. If weather cooperates with no more killing frost, with their developed root system, we will have the earliest tomatoes just as others are thinking of setting out spring garden plantings.

[biodieselman]

Ho Ho Tai suggested a tongue-in-cheek post on extreme recycling, burning dried manure for our homes. While most of us go , this is really a serious topic as Ho Ho Tai said in a PM to Risible. For centuries, & to this day, humans burn dried manure for heating & cooking. Burning dried manure has very little foul smell, if any. Native Americans taught early plains pioneers to burn dried buffalo chips for cooking & warmth. I have cattle in the open field behind our home, but I don't think Risible will allow me to hop over the fence to collect cow chips to burn in our fireplace on cold winter nights.

There are a lot of cattle feed lots in Imperial Valley, California. When I went camping at Glamis I drove by a full scale experimental manure-fired power plant. It has been mothballed because of several problems, one of which is that the silica in straw doesn't burn. The silica collects in big deposits that break off the smoke stack & fall back into the furnace, causing damage. This technology doesn't appear practical. Manure digesters are another solution, marginally effective, but no one wants to live next to one.

New clean burning diesel powered cars, which will be appearing very soon in your showroom floors, use urea (ammonia) to control NOX emissions. Much like Mercedes Bluetek technology, promisingTexas A&M research uses cow manure as an ammonia source to remove 90% of NOX from coal fired power plants. America has plenty of coal energy, but coal emissions are very dirty. America has a serious pollution problem with feed-lot manure streams. This technology would solve three problems: American dependence on terrorist oil, manure pollution & cleaning up coal fired power plants.

I personally would like to see algae ponds fed with manure & coal power plant emissions to produce algae/biodiesel. I would be all for coal fired power plants if these two technologies can clean up dirty coal emissions & get us out of the Middle East all together.

Thanks Ho Ho Tai for your suggestion.

[HottiMegan]

Originally Posted by fa_man_stan

I was thinking about the idea of "right tech" that biodieselman mentioned. The hardest thing about being environmentally conscious is finding out what is in fact good for the environment. There seem to be a lot of disingenuous products out there, not necessarily intentionally deceptive; things that appear to make sense, but actually affect the environment in adverse ways that aren't so obvious. The example that always sticks out in my mind is the company that I used to work for. For the sake of not being sued for libel, I won't name the company. (I've had a lot of strange jobs, but that's another story...) I was a R&D technician for a label / paper company. They marketed labels that were made out of recycled paper; a good thing. To hold the recycled paper to the backing, they had to use an unusually toxic adhesive. The benefit of recycling paper is obviously lost with such a product.

The whole concept of labels is not particularly sound for the environment either. For every label you see on packages, there is a backing that has been thrown away (most consumer type of labels). Remember the stamps that you used to lick? Why did we get rid of them? They had no backing that was thrown away. Just simple little things like that, that aren't so obvious really add up to degrade the environment and add unnecessarily to our landfills.

Lawns are another thing that is going to require some good thought. I was amazed; grass (of the lawn variety...) is the single most grown crop (if you consider it as such) in the United States. The combined lawns of the entire U.S. could cover the whole state of Mississippi. Most of the grass varieties aren't native to where they are grown (especially in the west). Non-native grasses spreading out into our deserts are the cause of range fires in places that never had fires before (at least not as large) because there didn't used to be grass to lead fire from plant to plant. We use an incredible amount of resources to grow and maintain lawns; fertilizer, large amounts of water, gasoline powered lawnmowers etc. So let's get rid of our lawns and plant drought resistant plants! (This is probably most relevant here in the Southwest and West...) Do you want your kids playing in scrub brush or some other prickly drought resistant plant? With the sprawling suburbs that we have built, we really can't have raked dirt yards like most places in the world have without having increased particulate in our neighborhoods (dust flying when the wind blows). Introduced non-native drought resistant plants may have unforseen consequences on native species (especially planted on a large scale). Native vegetation may not grow so easily in a landscape of roads and fences dividing up the space, and unnatural water drainage. Suburban yards in the Midwest and back East would probably do OK with minimal maintenance if people really wanted to conserve resources. Maybe you noticed that high end housing developments (in the West) tend to look like a snapshot taken out of the Midwest or East, with rolling grassy hills, a creek meandering through, nice green leafy trees etc. The names are even things like "Stone Brook", "Aspen Ranch"; places that just a few years earlier were nothing but scrub brush and oak trees at best. We are creating high maintenance, unnatural environments (The lake communities around Las Vegas NV, another example).

Local biologists just recently discovered that a certain type of non-native flower that people have been planting (I can't remember what) has apparently been having some sort of bacterial reaction with native oak trees in our area, causing them to die.

So what's the point of this? (Actually I'm not sure myself...) Truly doing what may be right is going to require a bit of thinking, but it might be utterly simple in some ways.

If anybody's interested, I'll rant about light bulbs and how they can make a difference in conservation next...

fa_man_stan

This post reminds me of the complaint i had the other day when I bought a camera at Costco. I needed a new one because my old one was hurting my neck when we'd go on outings (big bulky professional camera). So my goal was a compact camera that took good video and pics. I buy this camera and it comes in this HUGE box (that i will reuse but still). Inside the huge box was a small box that was about the size of a baby's shoe box and it held my camera that isn't much bigger than a cell phone. I can understand using the big box for a display and they give you the small box at a security check point. The packaging has gotten insane with a lot of electronics these days.

[HottiMegan]

This is a neat thread. I have been working on becoming more of a green household for the last two months...
It all started with me becoming a vegan. Stopping the consumption of animal products really lessen my environmental foot print. I keep 3-4 chico bags in my purse at all times in case i decide to go shopping while i'm out. (http://www.chicobag.com/) I try not to buy any proccessed foods so that reduces my trash output, and it's healthier. I reuse paper and buy recycled paper. I recycle every box and piece of paper as well as cans. I live in an apartment that is pretty good at recycling. I have noticed that my trash output is way less considering that most of the food i buy is veggies and fruit. I also hit the local farmers market to support local organic farmers.

I am soooo looking forward to owning my own home so i can have a garden. I was super jealous of my brothers HUGE organic garden.

Oh and all lights in my home are the energy saving bulbs. It's a dimmer light but my husband prefers mole like settings. I really noticed the savings in my energy bills.

[magnoliagrows]

Originally Posted by biodieselman

. However, we do have to go out of our way to recycle all our used electronics. Did you know E-waste & batteries are considered hazardous toxic waste? The heavy metals in electronics leaches out of land fills & poisons our drinking water. E-waste is having a huge detrimental impact on the environment but not many people dispose of E-waste properly. ?

Do you know what to do with a broken TV?

[XGuy]

Originally Posted by magnoliagrows

Do you know what to do with a broken TV?

Break it in to tiny peices and siphon it out your pant leg at work.

[biodieselman]

Originally Posted by magnoliagrows

Do you know what to do with a broken TV?

I've been meaning to post on e-waste again to help keep the Living Green thread alive. Allow me to thank you for showing concern & helping to reduce pollution.

I hope these web sites & information are helpful to you. The Consumer Electronics Assn. will provide a calendar of recycling events sponsered by retailers and local governments at www.mygreenelectronics.org. There is a 'Find Recycling' search feature on the first page, to the left.

More & more city governments are operating programs or have information for proper hazardous waste disposal. If this web site doesn't help you could call your local city hall or electronics retailer for location near you. Best Buy is starting to accept discarded cell phones, batteries & inkjet cartridges.

In California people can search www.erecycle.org for e-waste information.

L. A. Times, 22 Feb, 2007, pg B1

Enough with the dillydallying. it's time to get the lead out....

The experts are attending the Printed Circuits Expo at the LA Convention Center. The six-day conference, sponsered by the trade group IPC, ends today with seminars on intergrated circuits and manufacturers' demonstrations of a new breed of environmentally friendly computer innards...

At issue is the use of solder in the production of circuit boards.

The silvery...tin-lead alloy has been used to securely connect wires since...the 1920s. Since the 1950s, solder also has routinely been used to cover circuit boards' minute strands of copper. But new European manufacturing standards ban the use of solder with lead in it. Three U.S. states, including California, are considering doing the same. And experts were predicting Wednesday that the United States might not be far behind.

Increasing focus is being brought to bear on environmentally unfriendly, hazardous industrial chemicals. Many products will soon change. Europe is leading the way on eliminating hazardous industrial chemicals used to produce manufactured goods & if America expects to sell their manufactured goods in Europe, we'll have to change also. The environment will be a winner & so will we.

I know I'm repeating myself, but I'll say it one more time, the greening of all industries across the board & the greening of our personal lives is picking up more & more speed each year. Big changes are coming & they are coming sooner than you think.

Green is the new cool.

[stan_der_man]

Originally Posted by HottiMegan

... I buy this camera and it comes in this HUGE box (that i will reuse but still). Inside the huge box was a small box that was about the size of a baby's shoe box and it held my camera that isn't much bigger than a cell phone. I can understand using the big box for a display and they give you the small box at a security check point. The packaging has gotten insane with a lot of electronics these days.

It's funny with all of the packaging. From what I've read, and learned from a place where I used to work, a lot of it is related to marketing. They've done research that people will pay more for something in a bigger package. Arguably, a digital camera needs some additional protection around it to keep it from getting damaged. But software (that's on a CD or DVD ROM) is packaged in larger containers for the above marketing consideration; research has shown that a larger package makes a person think they are getting more and they are willing to pay more. (Also, software is put into book sized containers so it sits on a shelf better...) There is also "legacy" packaging. DVDs, that are much smaller than the packaging that they come in, are in containers that are the same size as VHS tapes, so that people with large VHS collections can put DVDs in the same cabinets as VHS tapes. Audio CDs were put into smaller "jewel cases" because the size difference from an LP was so different that marketers considered it unnecessary to recreate a LP sized container.

Originally Posted by HottiMegan

... I keep 3-4 chico bags in my purse at all times in case i decide to go shopping while i'm out. (http://www.chicobag.com/) I try not to buy any proccessed foods so that reduces my trash output, and it's healthier. I reuse paper and buy recycled paper. ...

In Germany when you go to the grocery stores, most people bring their own bags because you have to purchase a paper or plastic bag if you don't have your own container. I can see that happening in the U.S. sooner or later if we continue to use our resources in a wasteful manner.

Stan

[XGuy]

It's all too complicated and confusing for me, I just never throw my electronics away, I have in various levels of completion probably 8 computers. I traded all my old monitors to some indians for fireworks

Thats what I call recycling!

[HottiMegan]

Originally Posted by fa_man_stan

It's funny with all of the packaging. From what I've read, and learned from a place where I used to work, a lot of it is related to marketing. They've done research that people will pay more for something in a bigger package. Arguably, a digital camera needs some additional protection around it to keep it from getting damaged. But software (that's on a CD or DVD ROM) is packaged in larger containers for the above marketing consideration; research has shown that a larger package makes a person think they are getting more and they are willing to pay more. (Also, software is put into book sized containers so it sits on a shelf better...) There is also "legacy" packaging. DVDs, that are much smaller than the packaging that they come in, are in containers that are the same size as VHS tapes, so that people with large VHS collections can put DVDs in the same cabinets as VHS tapes. Audio CDs were put into smaller "jewel cases" because the size difference from an LP was so different that marketers considered it unnecessary to recreate a LP sized container.

I like how EA games are packaging in small packages these days. Many times there is no cardboard to the packaging. My husband and I are big time game players and i have always hated how much packaging is in software.

In Germany when you go to the grocery stores, most people bring their own bags because you have to purchase a paper or plastic bag if you don't have your own container. I can see that happening in the U.S. sooner or later if we continue to use our resources in a wasteful manner.

Stan

I get 3 cents back on every bag i bring in on my own at most grocery stores here. I also like the fact that I don't have to find alternative uses for the plastic bags from grocery shopping. I think they should charge for bags.. and that money should go to maintaining recycling programs.

[Tina]

I either use the plastic grocery bags for trash, or recycle them. I've been considering bringing them back to the store so I can re-use them, but keep forgetting to put them in my purse.

[magnoliagrows]

Originally Posted by biodieselman

I hope these web sites & information are helpful to you. The Consumer Electronics Assn. will provide a calendar of recycling events sponsered by retailers and local governments at www.mygreenelectronics.org. There is a 'Find Recycling' search feature on the first page, to the left.

More & more city governments are operating programs or have information for proper hazardous waste disposal. If this web site doesn't help you could call your local city hall or electronics retailer for location near you. Best Buy is starting to accept discarded cell phones, batteries & inkjet cartridges.

Thanks. The website showed that the closest place to Chicago was in Wisconsin. I called the city. For anyone else in Chicago in a similar situation: You have to take it to the drop off facility for household hazardous waste at 1150 N. North Branch. The hours of operation are Tuesday 7-12, Thursday 2-7 and the 1st Saturday of every month from 8-3.

Thanks for your help Biodieselman (sounds like a super hero name )

[biodieselman]

Spring is around the corner. The monarch buterflies that enjoyed our mild California costal winters are starting their migration towards the Rockies with spring weather following right behind their arrival in your neighborhood. Time to think about ordering your seeds. Johnny's, Park and Burpee are my favorite seed houses. I in particular like Johnny's because they offer growing information such as sowing time, seeding method, soil temperatures & plant spacing.

[stan_der_man]

This spring as soon as the snow melts I'm planning to be the Johnny Appleseed of cedar trees on our denuded hillside. I have a whole bunch of little cedar sprouts growing in places where they aren't needed so I'm going to transplant them in hope that some will take root.

Any tips for transplanting?

fa_man_stan

[biodieselman]

Originally Posted by fa_man_stan

This spring as soon as the snow melts I'm planning to be the Johnny Appleseed of cedar trees on our denuded hillside. I have a whole bunch of little cedar sprouts growing in places where they aren't needed so I'm going to transplant them in hope that some will take root.

Any tips for transplanting?

fa_man_stan

Stan, I looked up 'cedar' in in 'Sunset Western Garden Book' & it didn't list native species for the San Bernardino Mts. Generally it's better to move conifers when small, still dormant or semidormant. Cool weather is best after soil has warmed up in spring. The loss of some roots isn't a critical when the tree is dormant.

Several days before the move, thoroughly soak the soil around the tree so that the digging will be easy & the root ball will hold together.

Prepare the new planting hole before digging up the tree to be moved; that way you can move the tree as quickly as possible so the roots will not dry out. Dig the new planting hole twice as wide as the root ball & 6 inches deeper.

The bigger the tree the more soil you will have to dig up. Mark a circle around the tree that is 10 times bigger than the (or larger if practical) the diameter of the tree trunk at ground level. Use a sharp spade to cut the roots as you cut around the mark going as deep as the spade's depth. This will encourage a new set of feeder roots where you root pruned; and the shock of losing roots will be minimized. Here is where the work comes in. Dig all around outside the circle, leaving the majority of roots the tree will depend on intact forming a root ball.

If you're moving a larger tree & root ball is big, wire tie 1" or smaller chicken wire to wrap the root ball tight. Slice under the root ball with a spade or mattock. Really try not to use the trunk as a handle, instead lift the root ball. If you're moving a large root ball get help (call me if you need help, I've got tools & work doesn't scare me) or slide plywood under the root ball to slide on over to the new hole.

Plant at the same depth. Add one shovel full of well composted organic amendment to three shovel fulls of native soil. Form a encircling ridge to hold water in the basin formed.

Particularly with evergreens it would be wise to first spray the foliage with an antidesiccant spray. The spry will cut down water loss during the first monts the new roots are forming. Don't over water, just keep the soil moist for the first year. After the first year, just let it grow.

Piece of cake, right?

[biodieselman]

Heard an ad on the radio today. The Salvation Army is an official E-Waste recycler in southern California. I'm not sure if the Salvation Army in your city is doing the same.

When I still lived in San Diego, The Salvation Army main office headquarters in down town was one of our accounts. The parking lot didn't have a single Mercedes, BMW or Lexus. They were all Toyotas, Hondas and such. The executives didn't have expensive suits & they all were extremely nice people. The facility wasn't extravagant, instead it was clean & functional. The Salvation Army is about the only charity we give to. I was relieved to see this first hand.

[Tina]

Thanks for sharing, Bio. I've still been looking for a place to turn in my batteries.

[stan_der_man]

Originally Posted by Tina

Thanks for sharing, Bio. I've still been looking for a place to turn in my batteries.

Tina, I was under the impression that electronic stores (that sell batteries) were required to be disposal sites, such as Radio Shack, Best Buy, or other places. I believe all Radio Shacks in California accept old batteries, I know that the one in Highland CA does.

Bio-d, Just a quick revisit of my question... Our cedar trees are called "Incense-Cedar" or "Calocedrus decurrens". I went to the ranger station and purchased a book about native trees and bushes of the SanBerdoo NF. According to the book these trees aren't really cedars, thus the hyphenated name and probably why you didn't find them in your listing as cedars. I'm going to take your advice and try a replant this Sunday if you don't think it's too early (the snow is gone and the ground isn't so dry yet...)

fa_man_stan

[biodieselman]

Originally Posted by fa_man_stan

...Our cedar trees are called "Incense-Cedar" or "Calocedrus decurrens". I went to the ranger station and purchased a book about native trees and bushes of the SanBerdoo NF. According to the book these trees aren't really cedars, thus the hyphenated name and probably why you didn't find them in your listing as cedars...fa_man_stan

Hurry before warm weather arrives & trees are still in dormancy. They should do well but not too close to the house.

Incense cedar; Calocedrus decurrens; (Libocedrus decurrens)

Evergreen. Symmetrical tree 75' to 90' with dense, narrow, pyramidal crown; trunk with reddish brown bark. Rich green foliage in flat sprays. Tree gives pungent fragrance in warm weather. Small, yellowish brown to reddish brown cones which, when open, look like duck's bills.

Although slow growing at first, once established it may grow 2 ft./yr. Deep but infrequent watering in youth will make it unusually drought tolerant when mature. Takes blazing summer heat. Tolerates poor soils. Good tree to make green wall, high screen, windbreak. common on the Yosemite Valley floor, this tree has been seen by millions.

[biodieselman]

Hooked up the old flatbed trailer to pick up 7,000 pounds of composted chicken manure for the spring garden. The old straight-six-Cummins burning 100% biodiesel had no problem pulling my loaded trailer up the hills from the sand & gravel yard.

I don't use chemical fertilizer on the vegetable garden. Digging lots of composted manure into the soil each year has over time made the soil rich & black, full of organic material. Southern California has the sun & climate but not the water & soil. I can fix the water & soil. Having sun, climate, water & rich soil makes gardening all year round easy.

I had better get busy & dig in the chicken manure because Risible doesn't like the smell. Some in Hyde Park might believe that I'm real good at spreading manure around.

Before I forget, some of you guys were making jokes about my carrots in some other green thread in the Lounge. I can't keep up with you youngins so could you remind me what the joke is all about?

[Tina]

Originally Posted by biodieselman

I had better get busy & dig in the chicken manure because Risible doesn't like the smell. Some in Hyde Park might believe that I'm real good at spreading manure around.

Yikes. I don't blame her. That stuff smells beyond putrid. Was a chicken farm off the local interstate. It's been gone for years and it still stinks. Great fertilizer if you can stand the smell.

Before I forget, some of you guys were making jokes about my carrots in some other green thread in the Lounge. I can't keep up with you youngins so could you remind me what the joke is all about?

As if you need the 'splainin'!

[biodieselman]

BERKELEY – Global energy firm BP announced today (Thursday, Feb. 1) that it has selected the University of California, Berkeley, in partnership with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, to lead an unprecedented $500 million research effort to develop new sources of energy and reduce the impact of energy consumption on the environment.

The funding will create the Energy Biosciences Institute (EBI), which initially will focus its research on biotechnology to produce biofuels — that is, turning plants and plant materials, including corn, field waste, switchgrass and algae, into transportation fuels...

"Our new institute will combine the best qualities of individual genius in our faculty and staff with the capability to form teams that can rapidly explore bold approaches that are well beyond the reach of a single investigator or a single discipline."...

The BP grant dovetails with new energy initiatives at LBNL and UC Berkeley that include the Helios Project and a proposed bioenergy research center, which is in the running for U.S. Department of Energy grants that nationwide would total $250 million. Both projects are devoted to developing sustainable, carbon-neutral sources of energy, such as biomass conversion, which is inherently carbon-neutral...

...California will lead in energy research on clean sustainable alternative energy sources."

At last, research to mass produce my fuel of choice, biodiesel. I don't think the money I've invested in my 'personal refinery' will be wasted though. Somehow I don't think BP will produce & sell biodiesel for 55 cents per gallon.

Who says you have to sacrifice anything to be green .

On a side note, I am developing a bad case of the "want-me's". I bought a diesel truck in 1990 because a Cummins has a nominal life of 350,000 miles & has been known to run a million miles before needing rebuilding. I was trying to be green back then, knowing that diesels get 40% better fuel economy than gasoline. Plus the knowledge that it takes a tremendous toll on earth's resources to produce each new vehicle, with a long engine life expectancy I had hoped to keep this truck over twenty years. But unfortunately a car parked next to me at college caught fire & the ole truck hasn't been the same since. Plus Risible hates my truck.

America finally changed to Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel last summer like Europe did years ago. This enabled the use of soot collectors & catalytic converters to make diesel exhaust as clean as a gasoline powered engine. I was sceptical about how clean burning new technology had made diesels. The new 2007 6.7l Cummins meets 2010 smog emission standards today. We went to look at a new truck last weekend but couldn't drive one yet because they had just arrived & weren't checked out for test drives yet.

Diesels have a poof of soot when they start, a little soot until thoroughly warmed up & some soot if you stomp on the throttle. I intentionally stood at the exhaust pipe when the salesman started the engine & let it idle for us to hear how quiet the new Cummins is. There was absolutely no soot at all! I not only couldn't believe how clean the exhaust is but it was also as quiet or quieter as a gasoline engine.

The salesman remarked that they were embarassed when they went to park the truck in the lot. It seems that 350hp & Cummins producing 650lbs of torque just above a idle will make a truck lay rubber for twenty feet no problem. Now I've really got the "want-me's"!

[biodieselman]

If Uncle Sam won't act to reduce greenhouse gas vehicle emissions, then I guess the states will have to be the responsible ones to act as stewards of the environment.

San Francisco Chronicle
Monday, April 2, 2007

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court rejected the Bush administration's hands-off approach to global warming today in a ruling that pushes the federal government toward curbing greenhouse gas emissions from autos and strengthens the position of California and other states that want to regulate vehicles on their own.

The 5-4 decision said carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases emitted from tailpipes are "air pollutants' covered by the Clean Air Act of 1970 -- rebuffing the Environmental Agency's view that it lacked authority to regulate those emissions. And though the court stopped short of ordering the EPA to set mandatory limits, the justices rejected the Bush administration's claim that voluntary programs were an effective substitute.

"Under the clear terms of the Clean Air Act, EPA can avoid taking further action only if it determines that greenhouse gases do not contribute to climate change or if it provides some reasonable explanation as to why it cannot or will not exercise its discretion to determine whether they do,'' said Justice John Paul Stevens in the majority opinion.

He said the EPA's justifications for inaction -- that voluntary measures were adequate, that mandatory regulation might hamper Bush's negotiations with nations like China and India on emissions reduction, and that vehicle emissions were only one piece of the puzzle -- did not add up to a "reasonable explanation for its refusal to decide whether greenhouse gases cause or contribute to climate change.''

Yet another example of the federal government being out of touch with most American citizens.

[James]

Originally Posted by biodieselman

The steps to being green is a huge topic & I've only mentioned a few examples. What are you doing to help?

Its easier since i've got my own place as I can set the rules about this and my tenants must respect ma authoritay!

All vegetable waste is composted and the compost is used to help grow stuff in the garden and greenhouse

All tins, bottles, plastic and card are re-cycled (our local authority provides the bins for this)

All lights are low energy bulbs.

The attic is fully insulated and all doors are fitted with draft excluders.

I buy as much local produce as possible to minimise on food miles.

I volunteer for conservation work.

My job... I project manage a conservation project.

I carpool to work each day.

I drive a go cart that does 50+ mpg (but I gotta admit that I'm thinking of getting a bigger car)