Green Thoughts

Compiled by Sally Gilhooley

 

Oil executive T. Boone Pickens has had more than 1,400,000 people join his “Pickens New Energy Army.” For information visit www.pickensplan.com

Does your business qualify for Green America’s Business Seal of Approval? Green
America is a nonprofit organization dedicated to harnessing the economic power of“ green” Americans. Membership includes the National Green Pages and a subscription to Real Green. Visit www.coopamerica.org.

You can now read green. Greenopia Guides to eco-friendly businesses and resources are available for New York City, LA, San Francisco and Chicago. Go to www.amazon.com.

The Pelamis Wave Power Ltd., formerly Ocean Power Delivery, manufactures the Pelamis Wave Energy Converter that generates renewable electricity from ocean waves. Its ability to unlock this enormous clean resource is limitless. Google, which has been funding green energy start-ups, has filed a patent for a water-based, wave-powered data centre which would include Pelamis machines. Read and see pictures at www.pelamiswave.com

Green jobs are hot and getting hotter. Sustainability-focused career paths that will flourish include farmer, forester, conservation biologist, energy efficiency builder, urban planner, solar power installer, wind turbine fabricator and many more. Find out about the
jobs, the schools and the companies seeking green employees at www.fastcompany.com.

In 2006, the average American used 167 disposable water bottles but only recycled 38. In the US public water is regulated by the EPA which requires daily tests for bacteria and makes the results available to the public. The FDA regulates bottled water which just tests weekly and does not share its findings. Filtering tap water and refilling a special “green” bottle saves you money and keeps 38 billion water bottles from landfills. Learn about it at www.filterforgood.com.

James Hansen, director of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, in a talk to the National Press Club entitled "Why We Can't Wait," made recommendations addressing the problem of global warning. He suggests a moratorium on building coal-fired power plants until we have the technology to capture and sequester the carbon dioxide and also putting a price on emissions. He favors setting national energy-efficiency standards; having the National Academy of Sciences do a study on the stability of ice sheets and closing the gap between what the scientists know and what the public knows. Read more at www.thenation.com