Green Barbeque Round-Up

Speaking of Hot Dogs...

In the spirit of the 4th of July I've picked my brain and trolled around blog sphere for easy ways to have an earth friendly holiday.

Sharon Troy of Eat. Drink. Better. has some excellent tips on how to minimize your carbon footprint when firing up the grill. She suggests using a propane grill instead of charcoal, or purchasing cleaner burning coals like the one's available here at www.greenyour.com.

Paul Smith of Ecopreneurtist recommends ecoflame products. They make a non-toxic lighter fluid and a warming gel from sugar cane.

I suggest planning ahead and buying your fruits and veggies from the farmers market, or stores that offer locally grown produce.

Follow the same philosophy with your meat and stick to the free range organic locally farmed varieties. If your stumped for options, Nieman Ranch has great steaks and Aidells sells 3 kinds of certified organic and 10 types of antibiotic-free, all-natural sausages.

Happy Grilling!

Hot dogs and dirty dishes

With the 4th upon us, thoughts of hot dogs and flags and lemonade are running in my head.

After a long day at work, I am faced with stuffing the dishwasher with a large load of dishes.

Then blamo! it hits me. It has been a long standing joke that the number of hot dogs never seem to match up with the number of buns. And it is no joke that my dishes never seem to fit into the washer just right.

How about someone come up with a great little marketing effort between a dishwasher manufacturers and a dish ware company. Or dish ware companies could outsource specialized racks that you could by after market or pick as an accessory.

Just a thought. And a late night one at that.

Have a save and green Independence day.

Truck Market Dwindles as Gas Prices Climb

The Hummer: the last of a dying breed

You don't need to be an analyst or an auto industry insider to realize that the truck market is shrinking as quickly as gas prices are hiking. With fuel costs flirting at $5.00 a gallon, few people are opting for trucks and SUV's when shopping for a new car. Gas prices are also effecting the used car market, with smaller traditionally less popular vehicles pulling in a pretty penny, while trucks and SUV's are being offered for less and less. It should come as no surprise then, that the Honda Civic, a compact sedan hailed for it's reliability and fuel efficiency, is the top selling car in the US for the first time since 1992.

Petroleum-based industries have been hit hardest by the rising costs of oil. "All the factors are working against the truck market right now,” says Jessica Caldwell, an analyst with Endmunds.com per the New York Times. And as the demand for trucks shrink, companies like Ford, Chrysler and General Motors take a huge blow as they compete for sales in a dwindling market. Dealers report that the only people buying trucks are the ones who need them for work. And with skyrocketing oil prices that show no signs of dropping, we can assume this change is permanent.

Sink or Swim

For US automakers, to survive in the new market, some major adjustment is required. Automakers, whose bread and butter has traditionally been the truck and SUV sales, must switch to manufacturing fuel efficient/alternative energy vehicles if they are to survive. This task is easier said then done. Companies are losing money rapidly—GM's bank account is reportedly shrinking by 1 billion dollars a month—even as they make efforts to adjust. Skyrocketing gas prices hit manufacturers and consumers alike like a ton of bricks, and automakers are stuck with a ton of inventory that won't sell. Meanwhile alternative fuel technology lags behind demand.

General Motors announced it will shut down four plants that make trucks and alter or eliminate the gas guzzling Hummer. Chrysler announced that it will cut 12,000 jobs by the end of 2008. Ford who has already laid off thousands of union workers, is cutting another 2,100 salaried positions. The company speculates that they won't turn a profit until next year.

The near future looks dim for US automakers. Only time and money will tell which companies will dig themselves out of this rut.

On the upside, despite current economic woes, this change in the market is forcing consumers to re-examine their driving habits, and opt for more fuel efficient vehicles. At the same time car manufacturers are picking up the pace on sustainable automotive technologies—just last month Honda released the first commercially available hydrogen cell fuel vehicle—and this is something we can all look forward to.

For more information on how oil prices are effecting the automotive industry, check out these articles...

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/05/business/05auto.html?ref=business
http://knowledge.emory.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1148

Schwrazzenegar Slams Offshore Drilling Efforts

California's Governor may be a Republican, but he's sticking to his environmental guns. Schwarzenegger is a long-time critic of his party's stance on the environment and this week he publicly criticized the GOP-led effort to end the 27-year ban on offshore oil drilling.

Record gas prices and a sluggish economy have fueled public angst. President Bush has chosen this critical time to propose a measure that would end the long-standing federal moratorium on offshore drilling, claiming the lift would reduce America's dependency on foreign oil.

Governor Schwarzenegger was frank on his stance when he made these remarks in Miami at a Climate Change Summit, organized by Governor Charlie Crist(R), who is thought to be a potential running mate for Senator John McCain:

"Politicians have been throwing around all kinds of ideas in response to the skyrocketing energy prices, from the rethinking of nuclear power to pushing biofuels and more renewables and ending the ban on offshore drilling, it goes on and on the list," Schwarzenegger said,

"But, anyone who tells you this will lower our gas prices anytime soon is blowing smoke."

Though Schwarzenegger's views divert from his parties leaders, he was careful not to point the finger at any of them. A spokesman for the Governor said that his comments were not directed at George W. Bush, Charlie Crist, or Presidential hopeful John McCain, since none of these politicians overtly stated that offshore drilling would lower the cost of oil for consumers.