Hi,
not only Michigan is offering tax rebates.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, solar tax credits are outlined as follows;


* Residential Renewable Energy Tax Credits
“Consumers who install solar energy systems (including solar water heating and solar electric systems), small wind systems, geothermal heat pumps, and residential fuel cell and microturbine systems can receive a 30% tax credit for systems placed in service before December 31, 2016; the previous tax credit cap no longer applies.”

There is another study going around that is going around that says people who drink bottled water are more susceptible to diseases than those that drink tap. Apparently tap water has micro-organisms and bacteria that our bodies get use to fighting and when we drink bottled water, we lose the ability to fight off those organisms. Something to think about!

Also consider the fact that most of these bottling companies are simply bottling up regular tap water and label the bottle as containing "pure","mineral" or "spring" water.
The deception in this industry is atrocious and should be regulated as should its waste be.

I think a greener approach to specifically packaging clean water should be taken in order to keep ourselves from trashing the earth with plastics that will never degrade biologically.

Greening your home should be a priority for everyone on the planet, however...at the top of the list should be switching to the use of solar and small wind power whenever possible since it provides two huge benefits: 1) the homeowner immediately starts saving money forever on their utility bills, and 2) the earth's finite resources are protected and conserved in a responsible manner for the benefit of future generations.

It's easy, economical and prudent to start using solar and small wind power for home electricity - it saves huge amounts of money and it's the one thing that every person who lives in a home should do to reduce their living costs as well as their carbon footprint. Excellent resources and internet sites are available to help the smart DIY homeowner who wants to build and install his/her own solar and wind power-generating equipment like the one at http://netsolarandwind.com/solar-power-for-homes and yes, anyone can do it when they use one of the great do-it-yourself guides that are now available!

Greening your home is great, but the number one starting point should be the use of renewable solar and wind energy that you produce yourself - it saves money and you can feel good about what you are doing for the environment at the same time.

Brian J. Walsh

Althought the world's energy markets may be transitioning to renewable energy, another grass roots movement is underway by do-it-yourself homeowners to save money by NOT using energy derived from the energy markets and utility companies. Many more homeowners and small business owners each month are taking steps toward energy independence and they are insulating themselves against the already skyrocketing prices dictated by energy markets, public and private utility companies. There is no need to pay market prices for what is essentially free energy from the sun and the wind after very small expenditures to build home solar and small wind systems. There is much information available on how to do this (it's easily done by anyone who wants to) on sites like http://netsolarandwind.com/solar-panels-for-your-home which discuss ways to reduce home and small business energy costs.

Through building solar power/solar hot water systems as well as building and installing small wind systems to generate electricity anyone can easily save themselves a lot of money each month off their utility bills. The energy markets may be moving toward renewable energy but many smart and savvy homeowners are moving toward energy independence by creating their own DIY access to that same renewable energy - so they can produce their own power without the energy markets even being involved.

Brian J. Walsh

A closed cell polyurethane foam can give you just under R-7
per inch and would get you to the recommended R-value. The
home can also be energy rated and a system for the total wall
assembly submitted to local municipalities for approval. Some
inspectors say it is insulation only, others say it is the
entire assembly, it is up to their translation of the code.

Great post about protecting our water source and bringing awareness to the affects of drilling for natural gas on our water supply. The seriousness of the health threats of fracking are down right scary.

One of the best, simplest and most economical home projects any homeowner can do is solar do it yourself, and namely solar hot water. It's so easy and uncomplicated that anyone can do it. . .and benefit financially in a big way. A great website that can steer you the right way is: http://netsolarandwind.com/solar-do-it-yourself Folks with high electric/gas utility bills need to get on board now and get their solar do it yourself project underway - install solar hot water and you'll be sending me a thank you card every year for the rest of your life! Brian http://netsolarandwind.com/solar-do-it-yourself

I was at bad axe and it was A joke.The only ones in this is farmer and power companys!

Despite whether you are an active “go green” person or if you manage to dedicate a few minutes of environmental friendly attitudes per day, they both have its importance recognized to local or global community. It is outstanding to see how people are becoming more aware of ecological issues and more creative in finding conceivable and efficient solutions for them. I believe that having a clean and organized home environment can be a start towards green changes. It seems that these days we are consumed by our own purchases, having the need to buy more and more even when we don’t really need that specific product. When you realize, you don’t have any space left to keep your older things. Last year I decided to change this habit. I started by cleaning up my closet (leaving only the clothes and accessories that I actually use), and organizing the space in my office. All the old things were donated to social institutions. Nowadays, I consume not by desires, but by real needs.
For this process, I hired a home organization company, Closet & Storage Concepts, to help me in finding a suitable solution for the space that I had in my house. They helped me to literally transform my office to an environmental friendly work space, shaped to my needs. Believe it or not, even my productivity at work improved after those changes. I strongly recommend their work!

Nice to see politicians doing something for the environment more than just words.

Having worked in the environmental field since the mid-80's, this has been always the frustrating part of any cleanup. As an example, the cleanup site that I started my career in 1986 is still not cleaned up and continues to be studied. 77 years - wow! That's a long time!

State environmental laws such as burning are not being enforced by the deq or dnr.They have specifice laws in place but point the finger at who should enforce the rules and it always ends up going to the townships that say they dont have time or resources.So who is incharge of open burning and solid waste burning in the state of michigan?

The aftermath movie is amazing and really gets you thinking about what we have done to our world.




Mwa ha ha my email is a fake one so don't bother

These statistics, though staggering, are not surprising in the least. Consider, too, that only 10% of the billions of water bottles the nation uses are even recycled.

I think people are slowly beginning to realize that tap water is a more financially and environmentally alternative than bottled water.

Hello.
The St Joe County Road Commision in Michigan ....seems to delight in the desecration of the trees that line our roadways. Every little ways along a highway, or back road, examples of tree skeletons (STUMPS), or the Tasmanian devil effect, of their tree chewer-upper! Just horrible to see this twisted terrible tangle of limbs!
I put up a huge fight when they claimed that our trees were blocking the roadway for HUGE farm equip. to pass safely....when there were huges cables hanging low er than the trees. Seems to me if they can pass under the cables...how on earth do they navigate under the trees?
After several "upset' letters to the Town paper...i received many, many phone calls from complete strangers who felt the same way as I. Very upset about the horrendous trim jobs or NEEDLESS trim jobs that are taking place on trees hundreds of years old!
This needs to stop in my opinion if the trees are not in the way or wires or views of drivers at stop signs.
Seems the county is not going to be happy until there are no longer ANY trees that grace our roadways.
Lu Ann Herding

Philadelphia, Boston, New York, Toronto, or “tim buck two"….The plastic bag "legislation" and or "ACT" is simply another convoluted government "green plan" marketing scheme, and again, it’s just putting another target on the consumer’s backs and bucks too. Does anyone truly believe that they (consumers) were getting these plastic bags from the stores (retailers) for free, before? Do you honestly feel loved by your retailers & plastic bag manufacturers? And, you don't seriously believe "they" were giving away these before this latest “TAX GRAB ACT" right? No! You were paying for it before. The price of the plastic bag was built into the price of your steak and eggs…but now, you'll simply be paying for it again, because your government is seeing (TAX) to it. I don’t know about others out there, but it seems to me like there is some back scratching going on here folks. If you don't have a re-usable bag, then you should get some…plastic bags should be out-law-ed all together. Some people are rich and, don't care about the 5 cents for a plastic bag, or the environment, for that matter!
Government plastic bag TAX; simply adds to political suffocation.

Renewable energy is on the rise. This century will be the century of an energy efficient human race, where the sun and nuclear energy will be the main method of energy generation. Good article

Taxed? No. Banned? Yes.

This program works very well in Minnesota also. Many areas have more volunteers than they need. Nice feel good program that saves our tax money.

Thanks for the informative blog. I happened to stumble upon the article about the tough times that honeybees have been facing. I had just finished a newspaper article about how the city of MPLS, MN just decided that after 4 decades, it was now legal to have a bee hive on your property. Just made me laugh. Thanks and I look forward to future posts.

how do we get R-21 in a 2x4 wall?
does the R-21 count only the insulation in the wall? or the sheeting and other building material's R value?

I recently came accross your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I dont know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.

Barbara

http://www.ipodepot.info

Hi, do you have a copy of the webinar recorded for download?

Note:

It looks like there is a copy of the webinar at http://foundationcenter.org/events/archive/cl_environment2008_06_02.html

For some video related to environmental funding month during June 2008 see http://foundationcenter.org/events/archive/video.html

For audio, see http://foundationcenter.org/events/archive/audio.html

For transcripts see http://foundationcenter.org/events/archive/transcripts.html

I would like to get rid of all the junk catalogs , but i cant log in ,like the above example

Dear Sir or Madam

The Wilderness Society (TWS) is a national, community-based, environmental advocacy organisation whose purpose is to protect, promote, and restore wilderness and natural processes across Australia. TWS works through the avenues of public education and empowerment, advocacy and negotiation, and desk and field research. TWS is politically unaligned, but uses democratic processes to maximise wise conservation decisions.

Established in 1976, TWS is a not-for-profit, non-government organisation. The vast majority of our funding is from membership dues, donations, public fundraising, trust and foundation grants, and our retail operations

We would be interested in using this service to access information on international funding opportunities for our Save the Kimberley's Campaign, The Cape York Camapaign, and our National Indigenous Conservation Program.

Yours sincerely

Stefan Swadzba

To deal with global warming, the government needs to immediately plant more trees, and stop cutting them down. It is a major problem they need to deal with. On top of deforestation, we are pulluting the environment. The non-profit organisatiion at http://www.universalsymbiosis.org is active in these areas which will help reverse effects of global warming.

Yes! Keeping in mind the drastic environmental changes and rising fuel prices going Solar is one option open to all at minimal investments. The Solar Water heating systems are so easy to install and most of them come in a Do-it Yourself kit, With the technological advancement the once heavy, bulky hard to move panels are now available widely in light weight easy to carry by one personal only packages. The advancement in technology is not only limited to light weight, but for those concern about the aesthetics of the panels, the good news is that the panels are now available with a variety of trim colors to choose from and can be easily matched to your roof. Saving about $25.oo on ones electricity bill every month on a residence of 4. We all use hot water, as one of our basic needs and what can be a better way, than helping our environment, saving our resources and ourself's some money other than by investing in a Solar Water Heating System.
There are a couple useful websites I'm aware off, that I would like to share with you
1. www.dsireusa.org - is a comprehensive source of information on state, local, utility and federal incentives that promote renewable engery and energy efficieny.
2. www.powerpartnerssolar.com - one of the many manufacturers of certified Solar Water Heating Systems available. One place I saw the light weight panels and trim color options I mentioned earlier.
Lastly, the local utilites in some areas also provide additional rebates and incentives for adding a Solar Water Heating Sytem to your exisitng water tank.
Keep the look out on. Feel Good and save- money for you, environment for us.

Not sure if this makes you feel any better, bere in the UK, we have been putting up with expensive petrol prices for years. I think it costs around £5.50 per gallon, which works out to be around around US $9.

I tried to log in again to cancel catalogs and it would not let me saying that the e-mail address I entered was already in use. It was already in use because I have signed in before with the e-mail to cancel catalogs.

Let’s answer first why we have $4.00 per gallon in the U.S. in the first place. Most economists and laymen alike will tell you that it boils down to two main things: 1) Global Demand: Rapidly increasing world demand thanks to explosively developing countries such as China, Malaysia, India, Tawain, Brazil, and the list goes on and 2) Market Speculation: Speculators on the world markets bidding up the prices in order to profit on the commodities markets, specifically crude oil.

I have done away with all household chemicals. This keeps my family safer as well as protects the environment. Vapor steam cleaners are the wave of the future. They do a better job than chemicals while not harming anything. I use mine for everything from sanitizing the kitchen and bathrooms, to cleaning the bird cage. And I haven’t bought even one chemical product since owning my steamer. Check out “Vapor Steam Cleaners: Knowing What You Are Getting and Where It Came From” on Epinions if you have not heard of these environmental friendly cleaning devices.

I recycle all that I can but the company that picks up my recyclables does not pick up #5 and #6 plastic. I just hate to throw away my cottage and yogurt containers. Is there somewhere I can take them for recycling in Genessee or Livingston County, Michigan.

Even if a solar water heater is used only to pre-heat water for your electric water heater you are still saving a lot of energy.

Please don’t say “Global Warming”; say “Climate Change” instead. That way we can take credit for anything. Read on: http://penshorn.com/2008/05/11/attention-activists--please-do-not-use-the-term-global-warming.aspx

I agree with Matt the visitor. No one likes change, but it is either change your way of using oil, and gas or pay the price. If you want to save on gas, SLOW DOWN.

It's up to you what you buy to drive. If you're going for a new car, why would you buy something that gets bad gas mileage? If the answer is comfort, forget it. Comfort is over, and not walking has taken its place. That's the reality of the gas picture.

You can't make chicken salad out of chicken droppings. If the price of gas goes up as it is predicted, then what will one do with a large SUV at $7.50 a gallon. Complaining about gas prices won't help you. If you go smaller now, you may have a chance, but if you continue to do nothing to help yourself, then you may be at home a lot more than you ever dreamed.

If you have a vehicle that is less than five years old, car dealers are happy to take your "gas hog" as a trade on a new smaller vehicle. I did it yesterday. I traded a Toyota Camry, a large car by todays standards, for a sub compact. It's a hard ride, but I can afford to continuing riding.

The problem is REAL. The price of gas will NEVER go down again. Get ready for it because it's here.

Look at this big change in gas prices like we in the south look at a hurricane. It's coming, and we make plans to get away from the water. I know that the price of gasoline is not an act of God, but Americans are forced to look at the true picture, and leave the big cars by the wayside.

Remember this, walking ain't crowded yet, but it's getting close.

Most CFLs today on the market contain less than 5mgs of mercury and there are CFL options out there that contain as little as 1.5mgs of mercury- which can hardly be called a “significant amounts of mercury” considering that many item in your home contain 100s of times more of mercury including your computer. Mercury levels in CFLs can never be “nonexistent” since mercury is a necessary component of a CFL and there is no other known element that is capable of replacing it. But CFLs actually prevent more mercury from entering the environment. According to the Union of Concerned Scientist, “a coal-fired power plant will emit about four times more mercury to keep an incandescent bulb glowing, compared with a CFL of the same light output”.

Why doesn't anyone suggest slowing down and doing the posted speed limits. I have and I get approximatley 2-3 more miles to the gallon. I now get 36-72 more miles out of a tank of gas. That works out to a savings of 1-2 gallons per tank. I travel the freeway regularly and only a few drivers have slowed down. If only 50% of the drivers on the roads slowed down the savings would be incredible. This may cause a surplus that would then cause the price to go down. I have heard about people who suggest that we not buy gas on a paticlar day to force the prices down. This won't work because we will only have to buy more gas when we do go to the pump. I suggest we all SLOW DOWN for one week and see what kind of savings the millions of cars on the roads would cause.

As someone who sells light bulbs for a living, I am less enthusiastic than most about compact fluorescent bulbs. This is due to the fact that the ones currently available contain significant amounts of mercury. If one of these bulbs should break inside of a person’s home, it could cause a challenging disposal situation. It is my belief that the technology should progress to a point at which the mercury levels are low or nonexistent before people changeover their entire homes. Another consideration is that as these bulbs burn out, they will most likely be thrown away as though they are normal rubbish and landfills will have incredibly high levels of mercury in their soil as a result.

Leaders who adopted the Millennium Development Goals in 2000 envisioned halving the proportion of people living without access to basic sanitation by the year 2015 – but we are nowhere near on pace to achieve that goal. Experts predict that by 2015, 2.1 billion people will still lack basic sanitation. At the present rate, sub-Saharan Africa will not reach the target until 2076.

If we take up the challenge, the positive impact will reverberate far beyond better access to clean water. Every dollar invested in water and sanitation yields an estimated seven dollars worth of productive activity. And that comes on top of the immeasurable gains in cutting poverty, improving health and raising living standards.
This will help all you people on this blog to do something along with the United Nations in your locality.
Check this
http://www.orkut.com/Community.aspx?cmm=47234928

would that we could spend the trillion we are wasting in Iraq on ideas such as these

We have an Ash in our backyard, and have used every treatment out there to try to save it. We live in Shelby Twp., and it has been hit very hard with infestation. We do not want to lose this tree. How can we get this "EB", to save our tree. We have been lucky so far the tree is not totally gone. Thanks, Don & Lori Marentette

See answer

Lets celebrate the beauty and wonder of our planet.
Happy Earth Day!!

With all of the safety concerns about pharmaceuticals in our water there’s a safe solution. According to the U.S. EPA, the vast majority of these compounds are Synthetic Organic Chemicals (SOCs) and/or Volatile Organic Chemicals (VOCs). You should look for filters that are certified for VOCs, THMs and Chloroform as these are representative of the vast majority of prescription drugs. You can check out information on certified filters at: www.waterfiltercomparisons.com

Hi Jon,

We won't be offering any new grant webcasts--but we will be posting a recording of the February 28 webcast and the presentations on our website. We're hoping to have the site available by the middle of next week. You'll be able to access the new page from:
http://epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-programs/state-and-local/local.html

We are also putting together a series of other webcasts focused on clean energy options for local governments. Our next one will be on energy efficient product procurement and we are planning to hold it the 3rd
week of April. The confirmed date will be posted on the new website I mentioned, along with registration information. We also announce all of these trainings through a listserv--you can sign up for it it you're
interested at:
http://epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-programs/state-and-local/listserv.html

Hope that helps.

Andrea

**************************************************
Andrea Denny
Municipal Clean Energy Program Manager
State & Local Branch
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Mailing Address:1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW (6202 J)
Washington, DC 20460
Office Location: 1310 L Street, NW
Washington, DC 20005-4113
Phone: 202-343-9268
Fax: 202-343-2337
March 19, 2008

Check out the Interactive State-by-State Carbon Footprint Statistics and an interactive United States Carbon Footprint Map, illustrating Greenest States to Cities. This site has all sorts of stats on individual State & City energy consumptions, demographics and much more down to your local US City level...

http://www.eredux.com/states/

Glenn Haege promises to provide numerous tips on how to be green in regards to home construction.
Thanks for your excellent advice.