Chico Bags: 'Curb Your Consumption'

I had the privilege of meeting the owners of ChicoBag at the Eco City World Summit Conference in San Francisco last week. The conference featured some of the latest green innovations, however I must say, I was instantly impressed with simplicity and functionality of the ChicoBag, which is named after the town of Chico, California.

Reusable grocery store bags are all the rage, and the makers of ChicoBags offer a convenient alternative to single use bag consumption. The concept is simple: brightly colored nylon bags, that fold down small enough to put in your pocket, but are durable enough to handle frequent trips to the grocery store. Lots of grocery stores have began selling reusable grocery bags, but I have yet to encounter any product as small and as versatile as the ChicoBag. According to the ChicoBag website, the average US consumer uses 300-700 plastic bags a year. Using ChicoBags consistently would significantly cut down on the amount of shopping bag waste. Use them in place of paper and plastic bags the next time you go to the farmers market. Stash a ChicoBag in your purse so you'll never be caught without one.

Check out the ChicoBag website at www.chicobag.com to purchase a bag for personal use. Bulk orders for retailers are also available online.

What's Your Green Resolution?

As we celebrate the 38th anniversary of International Earth Day, there's a lot to be grateful for. The holiday, which began as a little-recognized grassroots effort in the 1970's has gained international recognition. President Bush, a man who publicly doubted the validity of global warming, managed to sign a green fuel resolution and plant a tree this morning (whether or not his efforts are sincere is besides the point). Earth Day reminds us to reflect on the state of the environment, and think green about solutions. Wondering how you can do your part? Make a green resolution and stick to it all year round. If you're stumped on ideas, borrow one of the tips below.

Green Resolutions to Live By

• Leave your car in the driveway. Hop on your bike, put on your walking shoes, learn your local transit route. Avoiding your car whenever possible will lessen your carbon footprint.
• Drink Tap Water. Think that fancy bottle of water is better for you then tap water? Think again. The jury is out on bottled water, and recent studies suggest that it is no safer, no purer, and contains no less bacteria then good ole tap water. Bottled water does however pose an environmental concern. It's estimated that 30 billion bottles of tap water are consumed every year, and 4 out of 5 of those bottles end up in landfills. Not to mention the resources involved in bottling and shipping the water.
• Replace your light bulbs with compact fluorescent lights. A CFL can burn 13 times longer then a traditional light bulb and uses about 80% less energy. Just make sure to recycle your CFLs once they burn out. CFLs contain small amounts of mercury, which can pose an environmental threat, if it is not disposed of properly. Visit www.earth911.0rg for info about recycling CFLs.
• Buy locally grown food and support restaurants who do the same. Buying locally produced food supports neighboring farmers, eliminates much of the pollution associated with transporting food, and supports a more sustainable model of agricultural consumption.
• Buy Reusable Grocery Bags. Grocery chains like Trader Joes sale reusable grocery bags at the check stand for around a dollar. Old grocery bags and canvas tote bags are also a great options.

Happy Earth Day!

Be kind to yourself and your environment today. Visit Wikipedia to learn more about Earth Day. There are also some that feel that Earth Day has become marginalized.

The Biofuel Back Lash

As my friend Lara would say, “it’s always something”.

Her most recent use of the adage came up in a discussion we were having about ethanol.

After reading about ethanol, blogging about ethanol, and learning about what a clean burning fuel ethanol is, I couldn’t stop singing its praises. I even looked into converting my 2002 Honda into flex fuel vehicle—a car that can run on both ethanol and gasoline. For an eco-minded consumer like myself, the benefits of making the switch are tempting. Take a look at the facts (courtesy of the Green Energy Network):

• The first car Henry Ford mass produced was a flex car—able to run on both gasoline and ethanol.

• Ethanol burns much cleaner then gas. The average car pumps about 4 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere every year, a car that runs on E85—a standard mix of ethanol and gasoline used to fuel flex cars—only produces about half the waste.

• Ethanol is nontoxic, renewable and biodegradable, and can be made from agricultural feedstock like corn, beets and soybeans. Any organic matter that is high in sugar and starch can be used to create ethanol. The folks at the Sebastopol Ethanol Collective make it from rancid wine!

Even the leading Presidential candidates are singing ethanol’s praises. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton both promise to make a law that would require all gas stations to carry the E85. John McCain, who called ethanol snake oil a few years back, has recently changed his tune.

So with all the benefits, what could possibly be bad about ethanol? The problem with ethanol is not the fuel itself, but the lengths that companies are going to feed the fierce demand for the product. In Brazil for example, farms are multiplying at an unprecedented pace to create crops, to manufacture ethanol. As a result, deforestation in Brazil has doubled, and the country now has the 4th highest level of carbon emissions in the world. Not to mention, increased ethanol production is driving up the cost of food. Factoring in transportation and production, it’s possible that the carbon footprint created by commercial production of ethanol is more polluting then the alternative.

Resources:

www.greenenergynetwork.com
Check out the Green Energy Network for information about environmentally friendly sources of ethanol.

www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1725975,00.html
Link to Time magazine article, The Clean Energy Scam.

Image courtesy of www.freedigitalphotos.net

Opportunities Abound for Green Entrepreneurs

Recently while shopping for groceries, I was compelled to pick up the latest copy of Black Enterprise Magazine. It’s cover boasts a beaming woman clad in professional attire amidst lush foliage. The accompanying caption reads, “Green Business in Full Bloom”.

The April issue of Black Enterprise marks the start of the magazine’s BEing Green campaign, with a feature article that details the economic opportunities of the "green economy". Long hailed as a cause of tree huggers and college students, environmentalism has recently gained mainstream momentum. Not that sudden popularity is a requirement to validate the cause. Still, it’s refreshing that people are finally beginning to understand that the environment, the way we treat our communities, and the amount of chemicals in the food that we put into our bodies, are issues that we can no longer ignore.

Maybe it’s high cost of gas, or reports of global warming that sparked this change of consciousness. Whatever the trigger, there's no denying that being green is suddenly cool. Green is the new black. In traffic, bumper stickers tell you to recycle. On city corners canvassers hustle cash donations to save the redwoods. You can hardly open a newspaper or magazine without stumbling upon a reference to biofuels or green homes. In grocery stores organic versions of popular foods fill shelves, and more and more wineries are boosting biodynamic libations.

For entrepreneurs, the demand for green products and services can translate into big time bucks --ironically, major corporations are already cashing in on the frenzy. It would not be a stretch to liken today’s green market, to the dot-com era of the 90’s, only this bubble is not likely to burst. Annually the green economy is worth around 29 billion dollars, and it is expected to reach 1 trillion dollars by 2020. For those looking to work for themselves and help the planet, the grass has never been greener.

Resources:

http://www.blackenterprise.com/green
Check out Black Enterprise for green business ideas, success stories, market trends and other info...

Mark Armstrong Represents a New Breed of Green Pioneers

If you don’t like the fuel that your car drinks Mark Armstrong can help you do something about it. Armstrong, a trailblazer among green fuel proponents, teaches a popular course at Santa Clara Junior College, where regular Janes and Joes learn to transform cars into alternative fuel burning machines.

His philosophy is simple. “We don't subsist on a single crop, and thus should not subsist on a single fuel," says Armstrong. "I tell the students; 'If you're lucky enough to be around sugary crops, run your car off of ethanol; if you live behind McDonald's, run it off used vegetable oil; if you live in a windy place, run it off that wind.' “ And if you live in wine country, run it off of the tons of bad wine that wineries throw out every year.

His bottom line is to break societies petroleum addiction by thinking outside of the box. With skyrocketing gas prices burning in a whole everyone’s pockets it’s easy to start complaining.

Armstrong asks you to follow his lead, get off of the couch, and do something about it.

For more information on Mark Armstrong, check out this fabulously detailed SF Gate article.


The Green Energy Network is also a great resource! This Sonoma county-based team of green fuel pioneers actively develops new ethanol based technologies. For less then $1000 dollars, they can convert most cars to run on ethanol, without compromising fuel efficiency. Network members often look to the rancid wine that abounds in their community as a fuel source.

Taxi cabs are looking greener.

Last month San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom signed legislation that will help to usher SF into a more environmentally friendly taxi cab city. The press release was released on 3/06/2008. We here at Green This Town are happy again to see another Bay Area City making positive moves.

After reading this my thoughts when to other large cities like New York and Chicago.

In New York, the Taxi and Limousine Commission will be requiring the fancier "black" fleet to lower its carbon emissions to levels only currently met by Hybrid technology. In the press release it describes the current 10,000 car moving from it's current 12-15 MPG state to a better 25mpg in 2009 and 30mpg in 2010. I hope that they are successful.

I spent a bit of time looking for other cities and their initiatives, but found nothing easily. We'll keep looking.


I felt like looking into this since spotting a SF Green Cab rolling down Market Street. They currently have a five car fleet and am sure they will catch on in the very progressive city of SF.

Boony Doon Winery Goes Biodynamic

Up Boony Doon road into the Santa Cruz mountains, the picturesque chalet that houses the Boony Doon tasting room is the only business you’ll stumble upon. It’s hard to believe that this quaint little cottage is the official storefront of the once high-volume wine producer. But then again, the modesty of the building matches the philosophy of the company, which scaled back production by 90% to become a boutique biodynamic winery.

What is Biodynamic?

Google biodynamic wine and a slew of sources will explain the method. The short answer is that biodynamic farming involves agricultural self-sufficiency, using a mix of science and mysticism to aid the process. When you apply this philosophy to viticulture, it means employing drip irrigation techniques, and relying on rain and fog to keep grapes hydrated and moisten the soil. For farmers it can mean coordinating sowing and harvesting times with the cycles of the moon. Some critics note an improvement of the strength and flavor of wines made using biodynamic grapes.

Boony Doon’s break from big business into the world of sustainable winemaking meant saying goodbye to some longtime favorites. The Vin de Glacia, a crisp white port with hints of pear is no more. Making the ice wine required the energy-rich process of freezing grapes while still on the vine to concentrate sugars. Proprietor Randall Grahm knew he couldn’t discontinue the Vin de Glacia without providing an ample replacement, thus the Viognier Doux was born. This sweet Viognier adapts traditional techniques used to make vin de palle—French for straw wine—whereby the ripest grapes are left to concentrate in the sun for 12 days after harvesting. The result is similar to a vin de glace, but requires much less energy. It is worth noting that Vin de palle originated in the Mediterranean, which has a climate similar to California.

Other notable wines include the 2006 Ca’ del Solo Abarino, a green wine with citrus undertones; and the Ca’ del Solo Sangiovese, a smoky layering of cassis, chocolate and cherries.

Links

http://www.boonydoonvineyard.com/

Another blogger’s thoughts on Boon Doon Biodynamics

www.goodwineunder20.blogspot.com/2007/01/wine-blogging-wednesday-29-bonny-doon.html

An NPR piece on Biodynamic Wine

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5725850

Here’s what Food and Wine Magazine has to say

http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/biodynamics-the-next-trend

Boony Doon wines made using the 100% biodynamic grapes bear unique labels like the ones shown above. These designs feature a single drop of wine magnified under a microscope to highlight the uniqueness and complexity of each wine.

The move towards artistic packaging is part Boony Doon’s new business model. Each wine bears a distinct and thoughtful design. The label for the Viognier Doux is shown to the right.