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Drink organic wine this Valentine’s Day
There are many reasons to choose organic wine for your Valentine’s Day celebration. Below are just some of the reasons why you should look for organic wine for Valentine’s Day.
A better wine drinking experience: Organic wine’s flavor far surpasses conventional wine. Organic farmers take the time to create better soil before they grow their vines and better soil leads to better fruit which of course leads to better wine. Because of soil health and special soil amendments, organic wine tends to have a bolder more intense flavor than conventional.
Why celebrate with pesticides? It’s crazy to drink pesticides if you don’t [...]
Post from: Blisstree
ReStore Your Home for Triple Perks
ReStores are the brain child of Habitat for Humanity. Habitat ReStores are home good outlets that accept donated goods such as reclaimed building supplies, furniture, home accessories, appliances, and more for resale. The donated goods are then sold to new owners who use the goods in their own homes when building or remodeling.
The perks of purchasing at a Habitat ReStore are triple fold…
One: It’s green. Using reclaimed and worn, but not worn out goods in your home is the perfect way to keep stuff out of the landfills. Not only is this positive for the earth but gives people one [...]
Post from: Blisstree
Florida Getting First High-Speed Rail Funds
Last year, the government promised $10.5 billion in funds for high-speed rail development and the first state to receive some of that money is Florida. Tomorrow, President Obama will be awarding $2.5 billion to the state to jump-start the first phase of their train system that will run from Orlando to Tampa.
Phase 1 will run along the heavily traveled I-4 corridor and take passengers to Orlando Airport, Orlando, Disney, Lakeland and Tampa at speeds above 120 mph – not a bullet train, but still faster than a car. Phase 2 will connect Orlando to Miami by two different routes (I-95 and the Turnpike). The system will eventually connect all the major cities in the state and points in between.
The first phase will cost $3.5 billion, so after the government funds the state will still have to raise $1 billion from private investors to complete the project. The state expects the first trains to be running by 2014.
Ideally, Florida’s train system is just the beginning of a much larger train network linking the whole East Coast and the nation. With $8 billion left to be doled out, I’m excited to see which area is the next recipient.
via Inhabitat
Local Food vs. Organic Food
The debate over which local vs. organic food is wide, divided, and pretty muddled depending on who you ask. There are pros of both local food and organic food as well as cons. In the end you simply have to weigh all the arguments and make a choice based on your own ethics and health considerations.
Benefits of local food:
Less fossil fuels used for transport.
Supporting the local economy and often smaller scale farmers.
Preservation of local green spaces.
Better nutrients. After being picked fruits and veggies lose nutritional value quickly. Produce on an extra long shipment transport lose the most nutrients.
Cost can [...]
Post from: Blisstree
10 GW of Wind Power Installed in U.S. Last Year
With all of the conflict over Cape Wind and the constant reduction in scope of T. Boone Pickens’ wind projects, it’s easy to feel discouraged, but here’s something to lift your spirits. Great news came from the American Wind Energy Association today. During 2009, 10 GW of new wind power capacity was installed in the U.S., enough to power 2.4 million homes. The last quarter of 2009 saw the installation of 4 GW alone.
The association gives credit to the American Recovery and Investment Act’s $80 billion investment in clean energy for the largest installation for any year so far. You can read the association’s full report on the year in wind here (PDF).
With big wind projects on the horizon for the next few years, and if all goes as planned, that annual number should keep going up.
via Energy Boom
Study Says Algae Biofuel Has Dirty Life Cycle
Algae has seemed like a great biofuel candidate because it’s extremely efficent at creating energy from sunlight and it could potentially form closed loops for power plants – absorbing exhaust while creating new fuel – but a recent study has knocked algae off its pedestal.
University of Virginia researchers have found that the life cycle of algal biofuel produces high levels of greenhouse gas emissions — much more than it sequesters.
The culprit is the large amount of fertilizer used to produce the algae. The fertilizers come from petroleum-bases sources and emit nitrous oxide. The researchers propose using fertilizer from sewage plants as a way around the problem.
It looks like we’re still far away from an ideal biofuel, if there is one.
via Yale e360
GM Will Design Their Own Electric Motors
General Motors announced today that they will be expanding their capabilities for designing and manufacturing electric traction motors, the motors used to propel electric and hybrid-electric vehicles. GM plans to have the first GM-designed and -built electric motors installed in some 2013 vehicles.
“In the future, electric motors might become as important to GM as engines are now,” said Tom Stephens, GM Vice Chairman, Global Product Operations. “By designing and manufacturing electric motors in-house, we can more efficiently use energy from batteries as they evolve, potentially reducing cost and weight – two significant challenges facing batteries today.”
Of course, the benefits from GM designing and building its own electric motors will include weight-reduction, range-extension, energy-use optimization, and coordination of motors and batteries, all of which will make for better, longer running, more energy efficient electric vehicles in the future.
GM and its long-time rival, Ford, seem to be starting a new round of competition. With this announcement from GM and Ford’s recent announcement about bringing battery resaerch and production in-house, both companies are moving to position themselves for the design and manufacture of components and systems for electric vehicles. Like a new space race, the benefits of this competition may reinvigorate both companies. Developments could also spill over into other fields. And maybe, all of this could lead to a resurgence of Detroit in the automotive world
Link: GM Press Release
Photo Credit: Photo by John F. Martin for General Motors
Choices in frozen organic baby food
When it comes to feeding your baby, the best and most healthy start is breastfeeding. Once you start feeding your baby solid foods the healthiest choice is frozen organic baby food. Why?
Organic food is the best possible choice for little ones. Their bodies are much smaller, less developed, and less immune to harmful chemicals and pesticides than adult bodies. Pesticides in non-organics have a stronger affect on a baby than you. For more information on why babies need organics read HAPPYBABY The Organic Guide to Baby’s First 24 Months.
Frozen veggies and fruits retain more nutrients than canned or jarred fruits [...]
Post from: Blisstree
Organic. It’s Worth it in Schools
This spring, the Organic Trade Association (OTA) is going to be awarding one school with a fully stocked organically grown garden or an organic vending machine as part of their new campaign, ‘Organic. It’s Worth it in Schools.’
Organic. Its Worth it in Schools. is a new initiative launched by the OTA – an organization who represents more than 1,400 organic food and product companies. Initiative goals include educating parents, school kids, and teachers about the benefits of organic and healthy foods in our schools. Not a moment too soon I’d say. As we’ve recently seen, most school food is not [...]
Post from: Blisstree
Organic. It’s Worth it in Schools
This spring, the Organic Trade Association (OTA) is going to be awarding one school with a fully stocked organically grown garden or an organic vending machine as part of their new campaign, ‘Organic. It’s Worth it in Schools.’
Organic. Its Worth it in Schools. is a new initiative launched by the OTA – an organization who represents more than 1,400 organic food and product companies. Initiative goals include educating parents, school kids, and teachers about the benefits of organic and healthy foods in our schools. Not a moment too soon I’d say. As we’ve recently seen, most school food is not [...]
Post from: Blisstree
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