BlewGreen

Texas EnergyValue Housing Builder Needs Your Vote

2010-01-11T07:08:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to GreenCraft Builders LLC and the architect William Peck & Associates for their award winning entry in the 2010 Energy Value Housing Award.

The Colleyville Eco House began construction in May, 2008 and is a demonstration project for the US Department of Energy's "Building America" program. The Colleyville Eco House has been selected as one of the finalists for the People's Choice Award. Your vote can help them secure the award!

The Colleyville Eco House has been recognized for: certification as an Energy Star home; a Gold rating by NAHB Green; and by USGBC LEED-H with a Platinum rating.

The 4800 square foot home is being monitored by the Building Science Consortium. The average monthly heating and cooling goal is $150 per month. The heating and air conditioning system has a separate electric meter, and will be monitored for one year.

GreenCraft Builders LLC and William Peck & Associates, both based in Lewisville, Texas, are encouraging you to vote for the Colleyville Eco House for the 2010 People's Choice. Link here to the EnergyValue Housing Award site and place your vote today. (The deadline is Tuesday, 01/12/2010 at noon, eastern time.)

Wash Away the Winter Blues

2009-12-14T09:52:00.000-08:00

Wash away the winter blues and do right by your skin and the earth when you use soaps made from natural ingredients.

Synthetic soap is made from harsh detergents and chemicals (some of which have been shown to cause cancer). One quick way to tell if the bar or liquid you are using to suds with is a natural soap is if it says "soap" on the label. If the label you have states "beauty" or "moisturizing" bar, it is not natural soap. Only soap can have "soap" on the label.

One locally made, all natural real soap is from a wild soap bar out of Austin. Their soaps feature cold pressed or extra virgin olive oil. Olive oil is rich in antioxidants and skin nutrients. Coconut oil provides the bubbly lather, organic palm oil increases the longevity of the soap (while protecting the rainforest) and the creaminess is accomplished with the addition of castor oil.

A wild soap bar has a wonderful selection of natural soaps, including some Texas favorites like Bluebonnet, Mesquite and Prickly Pear. If you need something for Fido, consider WooF WiLD Natural Dog Balm or Shampoo Bar.

Products from a wild soap bar can be found in San Antonio at HEB, Central Market, Whole Foods and Green Fields. You can also order online before December 15th for delivery by Christmas.

Carbon Neutral Texas Retailer

2009-12-07T10:28:00.000-08:00

Based out of Houston, Texas, the Olive Barn carries unique home and garden items, featuring items made from talented artisans throughout the world. The Olive Barn also prides themselves on using environmentally friendly shipping practices. They participates in the Carbonfree program. The Carbonfree program, available through Carbonfund.org offsets the carbon emissions generated by the shipping of Olive Barn's products. Olive Barn has calculated their carbon emissions and donates money to carbonfund.org that goes towards a renewable energy project or reforestation.

The Olive Barn's commitment to greener shipping includes reusing boxes, recycling incoming boxes, using recycled boxes for shipping, wrapping delicate items in recycled paper, using limited quantities of reused bubble-wrap and using corn starch packing peanuts.

The Olive Barn also uses 100% natural corn starch packing peanuts. This packing material is bio-degradable and will dissolve in water. These corn starch peanuts are more expensive than styrofoam peanuts, but do not damage the environment like the styrofoam peanuts.

One of my favorite items at the Olive Barn is the "Seeds of Life Texas Memory Tree Kit" This is a great alternative to cut flowers when you want to send a unique gift that will provide lasting memories. The kit includes at Texas Live Oak or Red Oak, premium soil, decorative moss and easy to follow directions. The decorative gift box is made from rice hulls and is biodegradable.

Unfortunately, due to the drought, the Olive Barn is not offering their scatter seeds filled with Texas Bluebonnets, but they do have

Possibly the Best Holiday Gift!

2009-11-30T09:13:00.000-08:00

I was planning on promoting only local Texas companies for holiday shopping this year...BUT...the reusable Hydros Bottle with its built-in-filter is just too good of a product not to mention.

I placed my order today for several bottles and entered "FILTERPROMO" to receive free shipping and free filters for one year. I did receive free shipping (it is unclear how long the free shipping promotion will last). And since the order confirmation did not mention the free filters, I will wait to see if I receive them in my order.

Right now I use the filtered water from our refrigerator for drinking and cooking. For water at the office, I fill a pitcher at home and bring it to the office. I'm certain that the refrigerator filter helps, but I'm never sure how much.

But the Hydros Bottle with its built-in-filter reduces arsenic, cadmium, chlorine, copper and dissolved and particulate lead. It will be perfect to filter drinking water at the office (so I'm not carrying around a pitcher of water to work everyday).

I've ordered one bottle for the kitchen, so I can filter the filtered water from the refrigerator; one bottle for work; one bottle for my husband; and one bottle for my mother-in-law.

The bottles are expected to ship in December. I'll keep you posted as to when they arrive and if I receive the extra free filters.

Link here for the Hydros Bottle.

Gift Guide for the Texas Gardener

2009-11-16T09:35:00.000-08:00

For anyone interested in staking-out their own organic vegetable garden, "Texas Organic Vegetable Gardening: The Total Guide to Growing Vegetables and Other Edible Plants the Natural Way" by J. Howard Garrett is a great gift.

When writing "Texas Organic Vegetable Gardening", Garret and C. Malcolm Beck take their years of organic gardening expertise and provide step-by-step instruction on how to work with nature to produce vegetables, nuts, fruits and other food crops. You'll understand the importance of, and learn simple techniques to control disease and pests, improve the quality of your soil, utilize friendly bugs and how to cultivate, harvest and store what you grow.

J. Howard Garrett, a 1969 graduate of Texas Tech University has years of experience as a gardener, landscape contractor, maintenance contractor and landscape architect. Garrett has helped several large commercial projects convert to organic programs, including the Frito-Lay's National Headquarters in Plano, Johnson and Johnson Medical in Arlington and Collin County Community College also in Plano.

Garrett and Malcolm Beck also worked together on the "Texas Bug Book". The "Texas Bug Book" provides great information about how to manage and eliminate unwanted bugs from your home, garden and yard using environmentally friendly techniques. The "Texas Bug Book" also discusses the best bugs to have in your yard and garden.

Malcolm Beck is the founder of Garden-Ville Fertilize Company and the winner of the Governor's Award for Environmental Excellence in 1997.

Support Texas this Holiday Season

2009-11-09T08:20:00.000-08:00

This year I am making an effort to be better organized and plan our holiday purchases. Many of my family members live outside Texas, and this year I am going to give them a "taste of Texas". If you are considering a Texas meat gift, check-out Thunder Heart Bison.

Thunder Heart Bison produces fine, premium-grade Bison. The animals are raised on over 13,000 acres in the South Texas grasslands. They are free-range bison, and never injected with or fed growth hormones, steroids, or other supplements. Here the animals are treated with respect.

Meat from the grass-fed Bison is vastly superior to that from grain-fed animals. With that guiding principle, they raise Bison whose health and powerful immune systems are legendary. Healthy animals pass along those properties of health to anyone lucky enough to consume their meat.

Bison meat in general has more protein, iron and nutrients — but less fat and fewer calories — than beef and chicken. The flavor is sweet and robust, never gamey.

To ensure the quality of our product and reduce stress, all animals are field-harvested under the supervision of a licensed inspector from the Texas Department of Health.

By adhering to the path of the natural world in raising the animals, Thunder Heart Bison is creating a model for long term sustainability and biodiversity. This concept of sustainability and restorative practices is also exemplified by the cultural rebirth of those who have lived on the land for thousands of years.

Thunder Heart Bison produces traditional cuts of meat, Sirloin Steak, Tenderloins, Stew Meat, Shank, Rib Eye, Sirloin Tip Roast and NY Strip. Unique to the Bison is a cut of Bison Hump. Buffalo Jerky, from the same grass-fed Bison is made without preservatives and contains no artificial ingredients.

If you or those on your holiday list are not big meat eaters, Thunder Heat Bison also produces leather items (a weekend travel bag, a backpack and a purse) and limited quantity of Buffalo Rugs.

If you want to send something sweet, consider the Guajillo Honey, with its delicate flavor and beautiful color.

Check out Thunder Heart Bison and place your holiday orders early.

It IS Going to be a Happy Halloween!

2009-10-29T07:43:00.000-07:00

WOW! I know that people can be helpful, but I am totally impressed with the participation of everyone in our First Annual Halloween Costume Drop & Treat!
* Our Partners: Every business we contacted to help collect Halloween costumes for Roy Maas' Youth Alternatives said yes! They proudly placed the poster and box in their business, and spread the word to their customers and staff.
* The community: A great number of people dropped off their gently used costumes. Others gave brand-new costumes, still in the package. I know of one little girl who decided to donate several of her fanciest dress-up costumes because the kids at Roy Maas' need to "feel like princess too".

We made several deliveries to the Roy Maas' Youth Alternative Thrift Shop (3103 West Ave., SA TX 78213). I know we collected over 100 costumes from people who want to help make the lives of others better.

Thanks again to all of you and our partners (Alamo CrossFit, Azuca Nuevo Latino, Blonde Creative, Cariños Boutique, Chili's Grill & Bar, Robert L. Rodriguez DDS, San Antonio Family Physicians and The CE Group.

Remember to save this year's costume for next year's Halloween Costume Drop & Treat and Happy Halloween!

Electronic Recycling w/ Sam's Club

2009-10-05T12:23:00.000-07:00

Electronic recycling is available through your local Sam's Club. Sam's Club has partnered with ecoNEW to recycle, refurbish and resell your laptops, desktops, MP3 players, LCD monitors, LCD TV's, game systems, camcorders, digital cameras and Smartphones/PDAs.

According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, 235 million consumer electronic products sold between 1980 and 2007 are no longer in use but still accumulating in storage. Many of these electronics are gathering dust in garages, closets, or basements across the country. Even worse, 130,000 computers and 274,000 cell phones are thrown away every day in the U.S. according to Laptop Magazine and the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Through a link from the Sam's Club website, ecoNEW guides you through the identification process of the item you wish to recycle. This identification determines the value ecoNEW will give you, in the form of a Sam's Club gift card.

For the fictitious unlocked iPhone that I was selling, (fully functional and has no damage) their offer was $155.00.

I know we have several cell phones around the house that need to be recycled. I'll dig them out of the drawer and see if ecoNEW will take them. Maybe I'll even get a few extra dollars to spend at Sam's Club.

Are Green Homes Selling in San Antonio?

2009-09-29T07:58:00.000-07:00

Over the summer, I went to an open house of three new garden homes built with green, environmentally friendly, resource-saving materials.

The three garden homes at 127 Davis Court (78209) were designed by award winning architect Don McDonald. They all have open floor plans, with good natural light and beautifully appointed interior finish-out (including bamboo flooring).

The energy efficient features include foam insulation, reflective exterior paint, Energy Star appliances, hot water on-demand and rain-water collection to be used to water the drought-tolerant plants.

The largest of the three garden homes is 3,513 square feet, with 5 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms. There are two courtyards providing great light for the main living room downstairs: one with pavers and the other has grass. This garden home is listed with Phyllis Browning Company for $699,000 (nearly $200/sq.ft.).

Now, three months after the open house, the same garden home is unsold, and can be rented for $3,450/month.

The two other garden homes have not sold either. The 3 bedroom, 4 bath, 2,824 square foot $589,000 home can be rented for $2,990 and the 2/2, 2,656 square foot home for sale at $524,900 is available for lease at $2,750 per month.

So, why have these garden homes remained unsold? Is it the price? The tight housing market? Is it the limited of demand for garden homes? Is it the lack of interest for green building in San Antonio.

Will these unsold homes discourage other developers from going green? Only time will tell.

Make A Difference THIS WEEK!

2009-09-14T10:20:00.000-07:00

Make this week more environmentally friendly (and save money) by doing these 5 simple steps:

1) Turn off your automated sprinkler system.
According to Mark A. Peterson, Conservation Project Coordinator at SAWS, "Bountiful rainfall these past few days. Our soil is saturated and there is no need to water."

2) Skip beef for one day.
You will save 12,009 gallons of water for every pound of beef you don't eat.

3) Change out two incandescent bulb for CLFs.
CFLs use 75% less energy than incandescent bulbs, and last up to 10 times longer. If you replace two 100 watt incandescent bulbs with 27W CFLs, you will save about 83.95 kW-hours per year with a utility bill savings of about $26. Most people will replace nearly 5 bulb per year, at an average cost of $5.60. Since CFLs last 10 times as long, your annual cost to replace a CFL is only $1.81. By replacing only two 100 watt incandescent bulbs with two CFLs, your annual savings is $91.41 per year. Check out the High-efficiency Fluorescent Lighting cost Savings Calculator at the San Diego Earth Times website.

I almost forgot, CPS Energy is offering a coupon for CFLs purchased at HEB. So, add $4.00 to your $91.41, and you've save over $95 this year! Well worth the effort it took to print the coupon, buy the bulbs and replace them once you go home!

4) Skip the "free" plastic shopping bag!
How can such a small, weightless, flimsy product be SO bad for the environment? Let me explain: Single-use bags made of high-density polyethylene will last in our landfills for nearly 1,000 years. The Wall Street Journal states that the US uses 100 Billion plastic shopping bags each year, requiring 12 Million barrels of oil to produce them. Each year, 100,000 sea turtles and other marine animals die when they ingest them instead of food. In just 4 trips to the grocery store, the average American family brings home 60 plastic bags. Just one reusable shopping bag, on average you will eliminate 1,000 disposable plastic bags. Reusablebags.com is a great source for reusable shopping bags, water and juice bottles and items around the kitchen and home.

5) Buy at least one locally grown fruit or vegetable on your next shopping trip.
Locally grown foods are fresher (less time in storage). Locally grown foods save the environment in CO2 admissions with less transportation cost. Locally grown foods supports our community and your neighbors and keeps you more connected with your local environment.

Carpool for Kids

2009-08-24T08:39:00.001-07:00

Now that school has started, your kids will be in involved in more activities than normal. This means that your gas prices will jump, and your time will have to be stretched. Watch this video to see how you can team up with other parents to carpool your kids from place to place.

New Article on BlewGreen.org!!!

2009-08-11T10:12:00.000-07:00

Trash the Grass

I just started reading "Unquenchable: America's Water Crisis and What to do About It" by Robert Glennon. In the introduction, Glennon talks about Las Vegas, how much water they use and changes they have implemented to reduce consumption.

One example of the conservation efforts in Las Vegas is the monetary incentives ($1.50 per square foot) for homeowners who ripped-out water thirsty grass lawns and installed water-smart landscaping. Check out the Southern Nevada Water Authority program.

SAWS currently has a program to provide up to $400 incentives (gift certificate at a local nursery and a bonus on your water bill) based on a reduction in your water use. The basic requirements are to reduce turf grass, include shade trees and low water plants. On the SAWS website, the Botanical Gardens provides information about different garden styles, with a photo, some plant suggestions and information about maintenance.

Public Transportation: Know the Facts

2009-08-03T12:03:00.000-07:00

Public transportation is everywhere and can be found in many forms. The City of San Antonio is no exception when it comes to offering these services. Do busses, trolleys and van pool services sound familiar? Sure they do! If you haven't taken part in public transportation, then hopefully these facts will get you thinking.

Congestion costs in the United States would be an additional $10.2 billion if not for the services of public transportation.
Daily usage of public transportation can save the equivalent of 900,00 automobile fill-ups per day!
People who use public transportation save an average of $8,000 yearly. Even more can be saved as the price of fuel continues to rise.
Using public transportation to get to work supports another ones job. Approximately 30,000 jobs are protected by every $1 billion invested in federally aided public transportation projects.
San Antonio's own VIA Metropolitan Transit ranks among the top 30 U.S. Bus Agencies list.

It's not expected that you become an overnight public commuter, but every little bit counts. Start off small by using public transportation to get to the supermarket, doctor visits or even a friends house. You will soon be wondering why you hadn't thought of public transportation sooner!

Green Tip: Reduce Waste When Packing for Lunch

2009-07-29T14:33:00.000-07:00

Always thinking of ways to keep yourself green? Us too! Our green tip is a simple daily task that will help reduce waste and also save you some money! If you (or your children) are the type that pack your own lunches, then listen carefully.

We all know that buying individually packaged items such as chips, cereal, granola bars and juices are far more convenient for us when packing lunch. But did you know that you are actually producing more waste than necessary each week? Buy packing 1 packaged item per day, you are creating 5 items of waste each week. That's 20 items of garbage per month just for lunch!

Next time you hit the grocery store, try buying these items in "bulk". When packing your lunch, you can place these items into reusable containers that take only seconds to wash after each use. You will also find that buying "bulk" items can save you money in the long run.

Now who doesn't like the sound of that?

Welcome to BlewGreen

2009-06-29T07:58:00.000-07:00

BlewGreen is the 24/7 news and information source of everything "green" for San Antonio and the surrounding area. Here you can post your praises and your criticism of how you, our neighbors and me are enhancing San Antonio's livability and protecting our unique environment.

We encourage you to send your comments, questions and pictures. This is your city and BlewGreen is your way to improve it and grow it green…BlewGreen.