"Nature, to be commanded, must be obeyed."Francis Bacon
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Floribunda Roses - All You Need To Know
Floribunda roses are some of the most amazing out there because of the large, dense amounts of buds that are produced. These roses will have simultaneously occurring blooms in each truss. They are less perfect looking roses but are so dense in their ...
Will Soy Candles be the Leader to Light the Future?
Ahhhh, the scent and sight of a burning paraffin wax candle and the appealing ambiance that it floats throughout a room! One may think that this scenario is innocence in its purest sense. There is, after all, that cozy feeling which makes one give thought ...
How to Dial Up a Recycling Solution for Your Cell Phone
Would you care to offer an opinion on what a person should do with his obsolete cell phone? Now, now... We don't want to hear about what you thought that guy who was talking on his cell phone during the movie should do with it... The bad manners of a few ...
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Have you ever wanted to power your home or office with renewable energy, but thought it was too expensive? Or you didn't want to deal with installing and maintaining equipment?
Now there is a way that everyone can use solar, wind, and other renewable energies, at a fraction of the cost. Even renters can power their homes with renewable energy.
Renewable energy certificates (aka green tags, green energy certificates, or tradable renewable certificates) make it easy and inexpensive for anyone to reduce or eliminate the environmental impact of their electricity use.
Each certificate represents the delivery of a specific amount of renewable power (usually one megawatt-hour) into a regional or national energy "grid." This replaces the non-renewable fossil fuels that would have otherwise been used with non-polluting energy from solar, wind, biomass, and other renewable sources.
While the renewable energy you pay for may not flow through the wires in your own home, the resulting overall benefit to the environment is the same as it would be if you installed solar panels or wind turbines directly on your own property.
The certificates are purchased in addition to paying your regular energy bill. So it doesn't cost less than standard electricity, but it’s a small premium to pay to keep toxic pollutants produced by the burning of fossil fuels out of the environment. And it supports the market for renewable
energy as a whole, which ultimately will bring the price down for renewable energy and make it more generally available.
These certificates are available on the internet, but not widely known. Green energy certificates are currently being marketed to big businesses that use a lot of energy and can make a big impact with their purchase, but anyone can buy them.
I recently purchased renewable energy certificates to offset the electricty I use in my own home and home office. Though my purchase is only 15 MWh per year for my 1500 square foot house, every little bit helps establish the market for renewable energy. It prevents the emissions of 20,700 pounds of carbon dioxide annually, equivalent to planting 1,500 trees or removing 2 cars from the road for one year. I pay only $40 a month (in addition to my regular energy bill) for solar, and other renewables cost even less.
For more information on renewable energy certificates, including a list of websites that offer them, visit http://www.debraslist.com/energy/greenenergycert.html.
About the Author
The Environmental Protection Agency’s Green Power Partnership has recognized consumer advocate Debra Lynn Dadd for her purchase of 100% solar renewable energy certificates for her Florida home office. She is the author of Home Safe Home (Tarcher/Penguin), publishes free email newsletters, and has posted links to 1000s of green products at www.debraslist.com.
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 President Bush Speaks on Conservation and the Environment (Nasdaq)
(RTTNews) - President George Bush gave remarks on conservation and the environment Tuesday. Bush said that, since 2001, his administration has "put common-sense policies in place, and I can say upon departure, our air is cleaner, our water is purer, and our lands are better protected."
Environment Secretary urges consumers to buy British (Daily Telegraph)
Consumers should "buy more British and eat more British" to create demand for homegrown food Hilary Benn the Environment Secretary has urged.
ARAMARK Launches New Dining Environment for Elementary Schools (Centre Daily Times)
ARAMARK Education, a leader in providing food and nutrition services at more than 4,000 schools nationwide, has launched Cool*Caf™, a new elementary school dining environment created as a result of comprehensive research with more than 2,500 students, parents, and teachers across the country. The new concept, which features nutritious menus, faster service lines and a fruit and vegetable bar, ...
Environment Canada issues rainfall warning for Vancouver (Vancouver Sun)
Environment Canada has traded in the snowfall warnings of the last three weeks for a good old rainfall warning.
College of Environment and Design receives top rankings (The Red and Black)
The University's College of Environment and Design's landscape architecture programs again received top national rankings. The bachelor's program was ranked first in the nation, and the master's program was ranked second in the 2009 edition of America's Best Architecture & Design Schools.
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