. For the average American household, monthly utility bills represent a significant chunk of the family budget, usually 5 – 10 percent of monthly expenses. Since utilities are such a big chunk of your expenses, there are probably a number of ways that you can effectively cut your home energy costs each month. While many people may see “going green” as an additional expense, there are a number of green practices that can help you slash your monthly bills. At this point, we all know how to set the thermostat higher when we sleep or leave the house. We know that we can turn the water heater down a little…
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Clean Energy Victory Bonds
Green America has, for several years, been promoting the idea of Clean Energy Victory Bonds which would make it possible for Americans to invest in clean energy . The problem has been that it takes an act of Congress before the U.S . Treasury can issue these bonds. According to the Green America blog, such a bill was introduced to the House of Representatives in August of 2012. From the Green America blog here’s a brief overview of this program: “Clean Energy Victory Bonds (CEVBs) are proposed U.S. Treasury bonds modeled after Victory Bonds sold during the First and Second World Wars. During World War II, 85 million Americans purchased…
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3rd Annual John Day or Bust at Solwest Fair
Drive your electric vehicle to John Day, OR. This a call to action for all electric vehicle (EV) enthusiasts. Join in and support the vision of replacing the internal combustion engines that are now powering America’s fleet of personal vehicles with electric drive systems. It’s the quickest and cheapest path to breaking our addiction to oil, cleaning up our air, and stopping the flow of our dollars to OPEC.This adventure will coincide with the SolWest Fair that takes place July 27, 28, & 29, 2012.The goal is to promote the wide- spread adoption of the EV as a vehicle of utility and adventure as well as be- ing good for…
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Got Garbage? Sweep It under the Bridge.
Apparently in the 1930’s we just threw our garbage off of a scenic bridge. Admittedly garbage did not consist of the plastic and the toxins it does today. Both the picture post card of The Bridge of the Gods and this exchange of 3 letters in the Forest Service regarding a complaint from the Oregon State Police are from the early 1930’s. Interesting to note that the 2nd letter states that it is legal to dump garbage into the river.
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Spanning the Seasons of the Gorge with Saur Farming
Winter at Saur Farm It’s January, and I have a terrible hankering for some fresh winter greens. The only problem is that I didn’t grow any winter crops in my puny garden this year, and the farmers’ market closed in November. In the back of my mind I remember Ben Saur, one of the owners of 10-Speed Coffee in the Hood River Heights and a local farmer, mentioning he still had carrots back in December. Maybe he still has greens? I stop by the shop to buy a cup of coffee, and ask him what he still has in the field. “Carrots, rutabaga, leeks, collards, and turnips,” Ben says while…
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Casa Verde CSA Guest Blog by Michelle McGrath, MS Outreach Manager for Gorge Grown Food Network
Abundant sunshine, flowing rivers, and snowy mountains feed into the diverse landscapes of the Columbia River Gorge. With natural resources like these it is no wonder farmers with less acreage and innovative business models are choosing the Gorge as the place to sow their seeds. The agricultural heritage of the Gorge has been preserved in the picturesque orchards that erupt into blossom each April, but a growing number of smaller, diversified farms are springing up in between. I have the immense honor of working closely with these farmers as the Outreach Manager for Gorge Grown Food Network—a food and farm based non-profit organization. Over the winter I checked in with…
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Creative Houses from Reclaimed Materials-Watch this Ted Talk
The Columbia Gorge ReBuild-it Center pointed out this great Ted Talk by Dan Phillips which shows examples of thecreative houses he has built from reclaimed stuff that would have ended up in the landfill. Along with inspiration for being creative and individualistic, his talk gives us some interesting insights about the houses we live in and why they are the way they are. Dan’s company Phoenix Commotion in Huntsville, Texas builds affordable homes for single parents, artists, and families with low incomes, creatively and with reclaimed material! Sources: Gorge Rebuild-it, Phoenix Commotion, Ted Talks
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Post Holiday Waste Recycling
Happy Holidays!!After the Holidays where to recycle all of the Holiday trimmings? Wrapping paper, cards and boxes that are 100 percent paper can be recycled in curbside bins. Do not put foil, plastic coating and glitter into recycle bins. Plastic bottles, jars, tubs and buckets are the only plastics that you can recycle at home. Christmas Trees and Wreaths in PortlandOregon Metro Informationhttps://www.portland.gov/bps/garbage-recycling/news/2021/11/16/holiday-garbage-and-recycling-tips#toc-holiday-tree-disposal Styrofoam™ Blocks (No food-related Styrofoam) Agilyx Tigard, OR https://www.agilyx.com/tigard/drop-off/ Know of any other resources for Holiday recycling in the Portland, Vancouver area? Ideas about reducing Holiday debris? Please share the information in comments. Photos: top: from flickr member foilman
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John Day or Bust 2011
Editor’s prologue - Interstate 84 wasn’t exactly choked with electric vehicles leaving Portland for John Day to take part in the SolWest Fair and the John Day or Bust EV convergence that took place the last weekend in July. However, there were three hardy souls and two EVs that did strike out on Thursday, July 28, thereby keeping this event alive for another year.
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The Triple Bottom Line that Keeps the Green Living Journal PDX Free
One of the best things about the Green Living Journal is the fact that it’s free to readers. And that’s because advertisers sponsor the content.
